My Everlasting Love
by Marauding Mara
Summary: COMPLETE! Mary has loathed Sirius for ages, but this changes in their 7th year. She falls in love with him, but now they and their friends must find a way to make it together, and survive Voldemort. Will love and friendship really prevail? S/OC J/L R/OC
1. New Beginnings

**Chapter One:**

It was a bright and early September morning and London's King Cross Station was buzzing with commuters. The place was swarmed with stressed-looking business people carrying suitcases and newspapers as they hurried down the platform to catch their train. In the very middle of the chaotic and fast-moving rush hour crowd, somewhere on platforms 9 and 10, one young girl managed to see something rather peculiar taking place right in front of them the adults around her did not.

"Mummy, mummy, look!" the girl cried, tugging on her mother's sleeve to draw attention. "A girl just fell right through a wall!"

"Don't be silly, Emily," her mother replied while continuing to look for the right directions at a message board. "People cannot fall through walls."

"No mummy... I saw it-" the girl started again, but she trailed off helplessly at the stern glare of her mother, who sighed impatiently.

"Sweetheart, I don't have time for this nonsense. What you thought you saw cannot happen."

"But-"

"It wasn't real. End of discussion. Now move along, we have a train to catch."

The mother grabbed her protesting daughter's hand and dragged her along to the nearest entrance of an intercity train to Exeter, ready to depart on platform 9. When the little girl was about to board the train after her mother, a mischievous-looking guy in his late teens winked at her, before disappearing through the massive brick wall he had walked right up to. He only had the briefest of seconds to hear the girl crying: "Mummy look! That boy just-" before he left one world behind and entered another.

The guy had arrived at platform 9 3/4 and was about to board the Hogwarts Express to start his seventh and final year at the wizarding school. And he could not be happier to return to Hogwarts and spend one last year hanging out with his mates and pranking younger students before graduating and having to adapt a more serious way of life: having fun was going to be his top priority this year.

He was still smirking to himself about the little prank he had just pulled on the muggle girl when he noticed two fifth year Ravenclaw girls – Dee Greengrass and Hyacinth Birch if he remembered their names correctly – were smiling at him. Hyacinth even winked flirtatiously. Hang on, did they think he had been smiling at them? Not that this little encounter surprised him in any way. To be Sirius Black was to be a catch for many of the girls at Hogwarts. He had become aware of his good looks (and started taking shamelessly advantage) halfway through his third year, when he started growing tall and athletic, which especially complimented his aristocratic features (about the single good thing that comes with being a member of the Black family). Sirius knew it sounded extremely arrogant (and James would never let hem hear the end of it if he knew), but he sometimes liked to look at himself in the mirror and wond if there was any other guy in Hogwarts that even came close to looking as good as he did.

Still, he was not particularly interested in getting closer to either Dee or Hyacinth, so he merely waved back nonchalantly as he moved along the platform and looked for his friends. Luckily, Remus was only a few yards away. "What's up, Moony!" Sirius said, carelessly dropping his trunk next to Remus's and sitting on top of it.

"Morning Sirius. Had a good Summer?" Remus asked, for a moment blissfully unaware of what had taken place in late July, before his mind shot back into gear and he pulled a face. "Argh sorry Pads. Besides the fact you decided to walk away from home, I mean... James told me. That must have been tough."

Sirius shrugged, responding in the same cold and indifferent way whenever someone asked him about his family background and the way his parents treated him. "It wasn't too bad, actually. Was bound to happen at some point. They weren't sorry to watch me go and if anything, it's only a blessing I will never have to look at that sour face of my mother again."

"And the Potters took you in?"

Sirius smiled. "Yeah... James's parents rock. I spent of the Summer at their place and visited Andromeda last week. She was totally cool about what happened. Said she thinks my parents letting me go might be the only decent thing they have done in a century. What have you been up to?"

Remus was still laughing at Sirius's last comment when he said: "It was not too bad, I suppose. The transformations were a bit lonely, though…"

"Oh yeah, I really missed those moony nights, too!"

Remus arched an eyebrow. "I could do perfectly well without full moons. It is just easier when you guys are with me."

Sirius recovered quickly and kindly patted his friend on the back. "Of course I knew that's what you meant, mate. It's yet another reason why should be celebrating going back to Hogwarts."

When he turned around to look at the Express, his eyes suddenly fell onto a brunette who had just arrived on Platform 9 ¾ and he felt himself straightening up slightly. It was one of his Gryffindor classmates, Mary Woods*: best friend of Lily Evans, who had been James' object of affection for the last six years. It was not that odd Sirius liked looking at Mary; most of the guys at Hogwarts did, because she was a pretty girl. Although she had not always been that popular.

During their first few years at Hogwarts, Mary was an intelligent, but shy Muggle-born who spend most of her days in the library with Lily and their other close friend, Brice McDonald. However, when their fourth year had come along, Mary had started to develop into a fine young woman. This was the time Sirius started to notice that some locks of the brown wavy hair falling in loose curls onto her back almost turned auburn in the sunlight. Or the miniscule freckles on her cheekbones, and that she slightly screwed up her nose whenever she disagreed with anything someone was saying. But the most striking thing about her had to be her eyes, which were a remarkable blue shade that stood out compared to her pale skin and dark hair and and lit up every time she laughed.

He was handsome and popular and she was beautiful and popular as well. To any outsider, Sirius Black and Mary Woods would be a match made in heaven. There was only one problem: Mary hated his guts. He could not even remember the last time she had smiled at him. In fact, the only looks she would generally cast him were those of utter detest.

For the life of him Sirius could not figure out why. Or actually... That was not entirely true. Sirius suspected Mary's hostility towards him might have something to with his numerous status of womanizer. That, and possibly the fact he went out with Brice for about a week in fifth year before dumping her for a Beauxbatons exchange student. Either way, everybody at Hogwarts knew Mary highly disliked Sirius. He did not think this was a fair assumption, though. In fact, he knew for a fact that if she would agree to go on a date, he could soon convince her that his intentions were sincere. He did really like her after all, although Sirius was not nearly as head over heels as James was with Lily Evans.

However, Mary having a change of heart about him clearly was not about to happen anytime soon. The sullen look on her face when she approached him and Remus was not exactly promising. Still, Sirius thought confidently, I bet I can make her smile today.

He casually leaned back against the pillar, making sure he looked totally cool in his jeans and leather jacket, and eyed her from head to toe. "Hey Woods, looking great this morning. What'd you do all Summer? Driving all the local men in whatever country you were staying into madness with your dazzling appearance?"

Sirius thought this was a rather nice compliment – and not inappropriate at all – but Mary did not seem all that amused. She merely rolled her eyes in annoyance before ignoring him completely and asking Remus about whether he had already heard that Lily (a former prefect) had become Headgirl.

"Yeah, she wrote me about it over the Summer," Remus replied. "I guess it will be quite the happening once she founds out that James was made Headboy."

Mary blinked, looking astonished. "What? She is going to freak out! How is that even possible?"

Remus shrugged apologetically. "She didn't know, Mary. James guessed you and Lily were corresponding all the time. He told me to keep this quiet so it could be a nice surprise."

Sirius snorted. "I actually told him to. Thought it could be funny. Cannot believe the prat went for it, though."

Remus shook his head, laughing, but Mary was shooting him yet another annoyed look. "You know, Black, I should have known y_ou _would be the one to…"

"OI!"

James, a rather lean and tall guy with glasses and black untidy hair standing up in every possible direction, was calling them as he leaned out of one of the carriage doors. "You lot up for missing the Express? It's almost eleven o'clock!"

Sirius, Remus and Mary simultaneously turned to look at a large clock hanging above the platform and swore as one. It was only two minutes to eleven. They grabbed their trunks and hurried towards the carriage door where James was still waiting for them. James helped to get the trunks into the Express before the three could hop on it themselves.

Remus got in first. Mary was up next, but right after she had placed both her feet on the stile, the train gave a sudden jolt, which caused her to lose balance and fall back into Sirius's arms, who happened to be standing right behind her. Mary froze in his arms when he caught her and held her tight so she would not fall down. Time seemed to stop for a moment and then the train slowly started to move.

"Come on, you two, hurry!" James called, before Remus leaned forward to pull Mary onto the carriage. Sirius only just managed to jump on as well, because the carriage door was slamming shut only a few seconds later.

Mary was still panting slightly when she got up to check on her cat Coco, traveling in a box she had tied on top of her trunk. The feline appeared to be in good health, although she was mewing in a rather annoyed manner. Coco hated being stuck in a narrow space with no real possibility of escaping, so Mary was not too worried.

"Phew," Remus said, leaning back against a window for a moment as he wiped his forehead. "That was close."

Sirius chuckled. "I say this is a promising start of our last exciting year at Hogwarts, Moony. You didn't hurt yourself there, right?"

He was directing the last part at Mary, who suddenly looked a little uncomfortable and started to blush, making Sirius wonder if she was thinking about their little embrace mere moments ago too. He had not minded catching and preventing her from falling down at all, but he suspected this feeling was anything but mutual. "Er no, not really."

Sirius could see she was hoping he would not comment on her reddening cheeks, but he could not help himself: he had to tease her about it. "Now Woods, I've gotta say... A short distance running like that and already you're successfully impersonating a tomato. Perhaps it's about time you started working on your condition a little, love."

Mary was now looking downright embarrassed. James chuckled appreciatively before following Remus towards a carriage upfront. Sirius was about to head after his friend, when - "Sirius, wait," Mary suddenly said hesitantly. "I don't think I would have made this train without you guys, so it's only fair to… er... I just wanted to ehm… thank you would be the word I'm looking for, I guess."

Sirius could not help but grinning smugly. "My pleasure."

"Okay."

"No really, It was my pleasure. When I mentioned this was a promising start of the year, didn't you think I was referring to you?"

And with that, Sirius gave her a last playful wink before turning around and walking off in the direction Remus and James had gone, leaving an utterly bewildered Mary behind. Just the way he liked it.


	2. Talk To The Hand

**Chapter Two:**

Mary was still frowning at the space Sirius had left behind after walking off to catch up with James and his friends when she realized her mouth was slightly hanging open. What in Merlin's name just happened? All Mary had wanted to do was to politely thank Sirius – one moment of weakness of where she had to open up to him just a little – and he immediately used it to his advantage to embarrass her right in front of James and Remus.

Oh, how she loathed that arrogant smirk on his face when he thought he was being funny. And by the way, catching her had been completely unnecessary; she would have been totally fine on her own. In fact, all she would have needed was a gentle push to get on the train by herself, but what did Sirius do? He instantly wrapped his arms around her waist, even tried to hug her. How typical…

And now that she was about to tell him she did not appreciate him holding her close like that, he left before she would have had the chance. Mary angrily gnashed her teeth, feeling more annoyed by the minute. Sirius Black... What a complete arrogant prick! Why 99 percent of the girls at Hogwarts was fancying that guy was beyond her.

Well... Alright, _of course_ she could see why girls liked him. As long as falling in love was all about appearances, that is. You had to be blind to not notice that Sirius Black was very handsome. But to Mary, personality was just as important when it came to falling for someone, and she certainly did not think highly of Sirius in that department. He was conceited, selfish and would consider a day he did not get a detention as a lost one. On top of all that, Mary was pretty sure Sirius only let Peter Pettigrew hang out with him, James and Remus so he could legitimately pester him.

But then Mary suddenly found herself thinking that if she looked at it in a more objective way, she had to admit Sirius catching her instead of letting her fall down had only been the right thing to do. _And_ he had made sure she was doing alright first once they got onto the train. That was quite unlike the Sirius she knew. For a moment, he actually seemed concerned, which was... well, there was no other way to say it: nice. He also looked rather cute when he smiled. Mary had to shake her head to stop herself from thinking about that mesmerizing smile. What was she doing? Sirius Black was annoying and arrogant and she should not spare him another thought.

"Er… Excuse me."

Mary's mind got pulled back to the present by the voice of a small boy. Scared first-year, she concluded at first glance. She just assumed the boy had lost track of his friends, so she smiled down at him and asked kindly: "Hi there. Are you lost?"

"No," he replied. "I'd like to go to a carriage upfront, but you and your massive trunk are in the way."

"Oh. Right! Sorry about that," Mary said, slightly taken aback by his bold behavior. Certainly she had not been this assertive when she was going to Hogwarts for the first time. However, there was no denying that the boy was right. Her luggage was practically blocking the entire aisle. With a mighty effort, she pushed the heavy thing aside just a bit – why did she had to bring all those extra clothes? _Why?_ – to let the boy pass. She then tried to move the trunk along the corridor a little further, but it would not not budge. Oh well, she reasoned, at least no one would be able to move it anywhere else either. It would be safe to leave her things behind and start looking for Lily and Brice's carriage instead.

* * *

Mary's search did not take long. Her friends were hanging out in the third compartment from where she had hopped onto the Express. Thankfully, there was no sign of Sirius - or any Marauder for that matter in the carriage – so she casually walked inside, heaved a relieved sigh, and flopped down on a seat near the door. "Hey."

"What took you so long?" Brice, a short blonde-haired with brown eyes who appeared to have been reading the Daily Prophet, asked in a cheerful way.

"Me and my sleepy head almost forgot to hop on the train in time," Mary replied nonchalantly.

"Or so we heard," a pretty redhead with emerald eyes noted shrewdly, grinning at her from the other side of the carriage.

Mary groaned. "Oh Godric, what did they say?"

Lily chuckled. "Something about you, Sirius and Remus literally having to make a jump for the train. Is it true you tripped and Sirius had to catch you from behind?"

Mary noticed she started to blush fiercely when she was once again remembered by having Sirius's arms around her waist before her mind slipped off thinking about that ravishing smile... She quickly pulled herself together. "Correction: I did not _trip_. The Express jolted when I tried to get on, that's why I fell. And of course Black was there right on cue to get his hands on me."

Brice arched an eyebrow. "Sirius Black wrapped his arms around your waist? Dear Godric, I can only imagine how awful _that_ must have been."

"Well, you should know," Mary replied mockingly.

Brice had briefly dated Sirius back in fifth year, until he brutally dumped her when his eye fell on his next victim: an Beauxbatons exchange student called Stephanie.

Her friend laughed while shaking back her hair before she faked a dreamy sigh and pretended to stare out of the window. "Oh, I remember. Those were the happiest ten days of my life," she added jokingly.

"Well, I did not enjoy it. Mind you, this chivalrous act was completely unnecessary. Sirius did not have to catch me, a little push in the right direction would have done it, I'm sure."

She looked at Lily, who was frowning at her. "So what should he have done, then? Let you fall right on your arse? Mare, Sirius was only trying to help you. Why do you still hate him so much?"

A better question would be: why does Lily not hate Sirius? He was easily as arrogant as James Potter, his best friend who had been trying to woe Lily ever since third year. The weird thing was that Lily used to dislike Sirius as much as James, but all that changed by the end of fifth year when Peeves locked the two of them in a deserted classroom. Ever since that nightly encounter, they have been getting along fine.

Which, if you asked Mary, was suspicious to say the least. Lily kept saying nothing happened and all they did was hang out together until Filch and McGonagall managed to get them out of there, but seriously: spending hours in an empty classroom with Sirius Black and no (attempt to any) physical interaction whatsoever? Exactly.

Still, befriending Sirius had not changed Lily's feelings towards James. If anything, it only complicated things between the two of them, because Mary happened to like James Potter a lot. They had been good friends ever since their first year. He was a truly great guy. Not in a he's-so-cute-I-wanna-marry-him-and-have-his-babies kind of way, but she thought of him as a true friend. So the weird thing was that Mary was friends with James (but could not stand Sirius) and Lily liked to hang out with Sirius (and she hated James).

Surprisingly enough, Mary and Lily had not once argued about this confusing situation. And they would probably have to thank Brice for that, since she took a neutral stand and neither adored nor strongly disliked the Marauders. Well, except Remus Lupin, of course. Mary had started to suspect Brice was developing certain feelings for Remus a few months ago, somewhere around the end of last year. Even though she never talked about it, Mary had caught her staring at him a few times and -

"-So..." Lily inquired.

"So... what?"

"Why _don't_ you like him?"

"Well, why don't you like James?"

The smile on Lily's smile faded rather quickly at the thought of James.

"There's your answer," Mary said, secretly feeling relieved Lily would not fire more questions about her feelings towards Sirius Black. She had not yet figured out why their recent encounter was confusing her so much, and she did not want to discuss it until she did. And if there was anything she could not do, it was keeping something personal from her friends.

She suddenly remembered that James had been named Headboy. "Oh Lil, I forgot to ask. How did you take it?"

"Take what?" Lily replied while helping herself to a Cauldron Cake from Brice's bag.

"James becoming Headboy. How weird is that? I mean, I'm happy for him, but the two of you together, who would have thought-"

Mary had stopped talking mid-sentence when she noticed the horrified look on her friend's face. All the color seemed to leave the redhead's cheeks and she had to swallow her bite of Cauldron Cake with great difficulty before looking up at Mary with big eyes. "Please, _please_, tell me this is a really bad joke?"


	3. Lily's Wrath

**Chapter Three: Lily's Wrath**

"No, I'm sorry. It's true," Mary said cautiously.

Lily looked like seen a ghost. And not friendly Hogwarts one. "I... I was supposed to meet with McGonagall after the welcoming feast," she stammered. "She would inform me and the Headboy about our duties. I was so sure it was going to be Remus..." She groaned in frustration. "I cannot believe this! Out of all people, they chose bloody Potter…"

Brice, who had been watching the two of them silently until now, finally decided to speak up. "Well, I bet James will have the night of his life. Years of trying to get close to Lily and now he'll finally get a real chance to team with her." She suddenly gave a loud snort. "Merlin, I would give anything to be around when he founds out Lily is his partner."

Mary sighed. "Hate to bust your bubble there, Brice, but unfortunately, he already knows."

"_What?"_ Lily snapped. "How on earth does he know?"

"The more appropriate question would be: how do you know?" Brice observed.

"Remus told me right before we go onto the Express. Actually, that's why we almost missed it. We were too busy arguing over why James preferred keeping this a secret which, of course"- she shot Lily a daring look - "was Black's idea. But hang on, they didn't say anything when they stopped by earlier?"

Brice shook her head. "Sirius only shared the story about rescuing you from what would have been a painful moment. I assume he still wanted James to surprise Lily with the "happy" news."

Lily was unusually quiet. She was rhythmically tapping her fingernails on the arm of her seat with a grim look on her face before making up her mind. "Well, I will not have any of it. This time it is Potter who is up for a big surprise!"

Without further ado, she briskly got up from her seat, tossed her long auburn hair over her shoulders, opened the compartment door with a flourish and walked out.

Mary and Brice were left speechless in their seats, staring at each other for a few seconds. Then simultaneously drawing the same conclusion, both of them got up quickly and hurried after Lily. They simply would not want to miss a second from what was about to happen in the Marauder's carriage. They could already hear Lily's high cries coming from a little ahead. Conforming their suspicions, they soon spotted a group of students gathering around a single compartment. Brice exchanged a glance with Mary before gently making her way through the crowd.

"You KNEW and you didn't even have the decency to tell me I am forced to work with you _all year_, you arrogant prat!" Lily was shouting.

Mary gently pushed aside two curious second year students so she could get a better view of what was going on in the compartment. What she saw inside almost caused her to burst out laughing.

Every single Marauder was dead quiet; none of them seemed willing to interrupt Lily's rant. Remus was cautiously following her every move from behind a book he had been reading. Peter had stopped mid-air lifting what appeared to be some Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans to his mouth. Naturally Sirius was the only one who still seemed quite at ease. He was lounging in his seat with his feet on the opposite chair, watching Lily with an amused look on his face. When Mary's eyes finally shifted to James, the only word she could have used to describe the way he looked was, well, petrified. He was simply gazing up at this furious Lily, who was currently blaming him of bribing Dumbledore into naming him Headboy, obviously wanting to make her stop shouting like this, but not quite knowing how to do that.

"-something only _you_ could come up with!" she fumed.

"-Wait, I need you to stop yelling for a minute there, Lily," Sirius interrupted calmly.

To everyone's surprise, she did.

""It was me who told James to keep you in the dark. I thought it would be a fun thing to do, but I can see now that I was wrong. In any case, if there's anyone you should be pissed at, it's me."

Lily blinked at him. "Oh," she said, clearly trying to make sense of what he had just said. "Well, you shouldn't have done that, Sirius. This was so unfunny it's not even funny," she added in a calmer voice.

"Gotcha Lil. I'm sorry."

She shrugged. "That's quite alright. I would have found out sooner or later anyway."

An uncomfortable silence, in which Jame's gaze was shifting from (a now smiling) Lily to Sirius and back, followed.

"Anyone care for some beans?" Peter asked promptly, trying to break it. "You Mary, can I offer you some beans?"

She shook her head. "No, I'm alright, Peter. But thanks."

She looked at James, who was audibly relaxing in his seat now that Lily had stopped yelling at him, although he still seemed reluctant to look her in the eye, and locked eyes with Mary instead. He smiled lamely and shrugged. "James," Mary asked curiously. "How did you know Lily was named Headgirl?"

"Well, as you know, my dad works at the Ministry. He ran into Professor Slughorn at a reception in July. Our Potions master was really enjoying himself that night. He was having such a good time that he finished two bottles of mead by himself. Anyway, he got a bit tipsy around that point and told my father about Dumbledore considering to name me Headboy and you-" he shot Lily a cautious look "-Headgirl."

"But still, it doesn't make much sense, does it?" Brice wondered aloud. "It's usually former prefects who get the job. If one of you guys were to be named Headboy," she blushed slightly, but Mary – who was standing close enough – appeared to be the only one who noticed, "it should have been Remus, right?"

Remus shrugged. "I suppose Dumbledore wanted to go another way."

Sirius chuckled appreciatively. "Yeah, Dumbledore probably thinks you guys just look really cute together."

James kicked against his shins (Sirius: "Ouch!") and an annoyed Lily was about open her mouth again when Brice intervened right on time. "Alright, that's enough. You two have no choice but to work this out eventually, but now is not the time. We're almost at Hogwarts, so we should get changed."

She smiled at Remus and when he had smiled back, Brice grabbed Lily by the elbow and pulled her along through the crowd of spectators while saying: "Nothing else to see her, folks. Move along now, all of you."

Mary lingered in front of the Marauders compartment as she was curiously looking at Remus, who had returned to his book.

"Something the matter, Woods?" Sirius asked, watching the growing smile on her face.

She ignored him and continued to stare at Remus until he no longer had a choice but look up. "What?"

Mary did not say anything, but cocked her head in the direction where Brice and Lily had gone to while keeping her eyes on Remus, trying to convey a clear message. _Brice likes you_.

"Er Mary…" James said, looking puzzled.

Remus on the other hand understood her perfectly. He blushed slightly and was looking at Mary, hoping she would get the message: _I don't want them to know_. Mary nodded once, making sure Remus knew his secret would be safe with her, before walking away.

The Express had already started to slow down. Remus sighed as he got up and started gathering his belongings so he would be ready to get off the train upon their arrival. James and Sirius, who were still stretched out in their seats, were both staring at Remus in amazement as they tried to figure out what kind of moment they had just witnessed, but it was Peter who spoke up first. "What was that all about?"


	4. Trying Something New

**Chapter Four:**

Remus seemed reluctant to answer Peter's question. He was pretending he had not heard anything his friend said and calmly turned away to put his book and other belongings in his bag. Only when he finished doing this and was about to leave the compartment did he realize he could not get out, because his way was being blocked by all of his friends, who were still staring at him expectantly.

"What?" he asked, trying to sound as casual as possible but not quite succeeding.

"Are you serious, Moony?" Peter said, snorting loudly.

James lacked Peter's patience. "Come off it!" he said, crossing his arms. "You and Mary having that telepathic moment a minute ago - what was up with that?"

Remus shrugged. "Beats me."

Sirius scowled. "Yeah right, and I'm a female Unicorn having the hots for Hagrid."

Remus sighed before hoisting his bag over his shoulder. "Fine. It was just a look of understanding. At least that's what I think it was. Mary was simply checking if it would be okay to leave you behind, James. If that answer is not satisfactory or she was referring to something else, I must have missed it. Can we go now? In about a minute the Express will depart and we'll all be heading back to King's Cross station instead."

Peter shrugged, apparently buying Remus's obvious lie, and set out to leave the train and find them a carriage. Even James, who was shaking his head in disbelief, decided to leave it for now and follow Peter instead. Sirius however lingered behind while watching Remus walk out.

"You coming, mate?" his friend asked after a moment, poking his head back around the compartment door.

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered absent-mindedly.

* * *

As Sirius was following Remus out of the train, he simply could not stop thinking about how Mary had been smiling at Remus. There was definitely something going on between those two. No matter how hard his friend was denying it, Sirius was not buying it one bit. He _knew_ smiles like that. A smile Mary certainly had never given him. With a jealous pang in his stomach, he continued to try and make sense of what the exchange between her and Remus could have meant. Suddenly he got struck by a terrible thought: what if Mary fancied Remus?

Sirius frowned. He recognized Remus was a fine bloke and all, but when it came to getting girls, Sirius was in a completely different league. Remus may be incredibly nice and smart (most girls at Hogwarts liked hanging out with him), but he was also kind of shy when it came to the opposite sex. One of those inconvenient side-effects that comes with being a Werewolf, apparently. Sirius on the other hand had girls falling for him wherever he went. But what was starting to annoy him more and more, was that his charm did not seem to have the same affect on Mary. On the contrary, she seemed to be downright allergic to it.

He suddenly stopped in his tracks: that must be it! The reason Mary was attracted to Remus instead of him was because his friend was nice and less... presumptuous. Perhaps if he acted more like Remus for a while, that would to the trick. He could... pretend to be studying a lot, hold off playing pranks and be righteous and nice - _just_ nice without being flirtatious - to Mary, and find out if that would change anything. Without any of his friends figuring out what he was trying to do, of course. Brilliant! He smirked for having come up with such an ingenious idea.

"Sirius, these things won't hang around here forever, you know. We're already late for the feast," James called, interrupting Sirius's thoughts. He quickly hopped onto the very last of the horseless carriages waiting for them at the station's entrance. As soon as he closed the door, the carriage set off to Hogwarts.

Sirius put his hand under his chin and stared out of the window. It was a remarkable clear night; hundreds of stars were shining down on them from the sky. Apparently he was named after one of them, but he had never been able to tell which one it was. He had never thought of asking his parents about it, and now it was too late. He would never figure it out, because he was never going to speak to them again. He vigorously shook his head to get rid of the familiar sharp ache in his heart. It was better this way; _he_ was better off this way.

"What's up your mind, mate?" Remus asked, who was watching him closely.

"Nothing, everything's cool."

"I bet Padfoot's just thinking of another way to win Mary over," James grinned.

Sirius grinned back confidently. "Right you are, Prongs. I hereby predict Woods will be dreaming about me and my ravishing self before the end of the month."

"But… Doesn't Mary like, hate your guts?" Peter asked.

Sirius hit him playfully around the head. "If only you had learned as much about women as I have, Wormtail, you would know love and hate aren't that far apart."

"Exactly," James piped in. "Which is why this year I will conquer Lily's heart."

"Yeah well, in your case you'll find that distance to be practically irreconcilable."

They all laughed before realizing the carriage had arrived at Hogwarts. The four of them quickly jumped out and bolted up the stairs of the castle. When they were about to enter the Entrance Hall, they spotted a group of anxious-looking first years waiting alongside Professor McGonagall, preparing themselves to walk into the Great Hall. When McGonagall noticed the four latecomers, she narrowed her eyes and beckoned them to line up in front of her. "You are late. Where have you been?"

"Well, that's actually quite a funny story, Professor," Sirius replied, determined to make his "act like Remus"-plan do the trick. Remus usually stood up for them if they had done something mischievous, and often got away with it too. "Someone, we assume one of the Slytherins, bewitched our carriage and made it take off in the opposite direction-"

"-Mr. Black, do you know what is making the carriages move?" McGonagall interrupted, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Er well no, not exactly. But…"

"If you did, you would never pretend that a bewitched carriage is the reason for your lateness. Thirty points from Gryffindor. ("But Professor!") And if I catch you lying like that again, you will be cleaning cauldrons for a month. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Professor."

"Off you go then. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes."

The four guys walked on without a word, eager to leave McGonagall behind, and headed into the Great Hall. When they approached the Gryffindor table, Lily, Mary and Brice were all looking at them in a reproachful manner.

They cautiously sat down opposite the girls. Sirius – making sure he had flopped down across from Mary - remembered his new resolution and shot her an apologetic smile. "Our carriage was having some technical difficulties. It didn't seem able to move forward, so we had to fix it first. That's why we're so late."

Contrary to what he was expecting (this was another excuse Remus could have come up with), Mary merely glared at him. "Do you plan on sitting here all night? Because if that's the case I will have to look for another seat."

Sirius blinked, taken aback by this latest vicious sneer. "No, of course not, you were here first," he muttered. "I'll just go then..." He quietly rose and sat down on the other end of the table, next to Remus.

As he was watching how McGonagall and the group of first years walked into the hall for the Sorting Ceremony, he silently tried to reflect on what just happened. So far his "being Remus"-act was not going well. In the last five minutes he had managed to piss off both McGonagall and Mary. He scratched his head, feeling quite disheartened. This was not how he had imagined things to go at all. Apparently being Remus was not everything either.


	5. Give A Little Bit

**Chapter Five: Give A Little Bit**

"Mary, don't you think that was a bit mean?" Brice, who had watching Sirius and Mary's last encounter with a frown on her face, whispered as soon as he sat down next to Remus.

"No, the prat deserved it," Mary whispered back.

She dared to shoot a look across the table where Sirius appeared to be listlessly staring at the enchanted ceiling. Or was he just being moody? She could not really tell. "Okay, you're right. Maybe I was being bitchy. But Sirius is a big guy with an ego the size of Scotland. I'm sure he'll live."

She glanced over to the front of the hall where the Sorting Ceremony had finally begun. They watched "Anderson, Zelda" and "Arai, Alonso" getting sorted into Ravenclaw before Brice turned back to her and said: "So you're going to apologize, then."

"What? No of course not!" Mary replied, a little louder than she had intended. Lily and Peter, who were sitting nearby, shot her a curious look. Then - thankfully - "Bennett, Megan" became the first Gryffindor of the year and the Sorting regained their full attention. They all applauded their newest house member before the Sorting would continue with "Donnelly, Louise" being placed in Hufflepuff.

"I think it would be the right thing to do, though," Brice persisted, making Mary grown.

"The right- Oh, come on! Who do you think you are, Mother Theresa?"

Lily, who had given up on actively following the Sorting Ceremony and was now listening to them instead, giggled, but Brice was giving them a blank stare. "Who?"

"Oh," Mary replied modestly while waving a dismissive hand, "just this famous Muggle philanthropist who's helping out orphans in India. Never mind."

Brice sighed and gave up on trying to persuade Mary. Instead, she turned back to the Sorting, where "Langdon, George" was just being placed in Slytherin.

Mary leaned back so she could catch Lily's eye behind Brice's back and grinned. Her best friend smiled back knowingly. Both of them were Muggle-borns. There had been a time where they had been insecure about their position among the half- and pureblood students such as Brice and James. But now, Mary was actually feeling quite proud of her Muggle ancestry. It was like having the best of both worlds, or so it seemed.

Peter suddenly sighed morosely. "I wish they would hurry up with this bloody Sorting. I'm starving." To support this statement, his stomach suddenly gave a loud rumble.

They laughed as Peter clamped both his hands to his belly in a desperate attempt to make the rumbling noise stop. Luckily for him, with "Williamson, Zack" joining Gryffindor, the ceremony had come to an end. McGonagall made the Sorting Hat and the stool disappear with a single wave of her wand. After she had joined the other Professors at the staff table, Dumbledore got up from his seat.

"Welcome to all the new and old students for another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Let me start by saying it gives me great pleasure to have most of you back with us. Considering the circumstances, some parents have decided to keep their children at home until things settle down. However, I am pleased to see most of them have placed their trust in the protection Hogwarts can provide once more."

The Hall remained dead silent. Everybody knew what Dumbledore was referring to. Over the past few years, the dark wizard Voldemort and his Death Eaters had been on the rise. Although Mary had spent her Summer in the Muggle World, some attacks taking place in the wizarding world had made it to the Muggle news. And Brice had also written her and Lily weekly updates on what was going on. Which is why Mary knew there had been several attacks and killings in July and August. One of the victims had been Trudy Billings, last year's Defense against the Dark Arts Professor.

Mary glanced past Dumbledore and noticed someone else was sitting in Billings's chair. It was a tall, dark and serious-looking man. His hands were folded on the table and he appeared to be following Dumbledore's speech with great interest.

"As most of you already know," the Headmaster continued seriously. "Professor Billings was present at Gringotts when the Death Eaters attempted to rob it. She fought bravely, but unfortunately she got stuck under one of the falling bookcases and could not make it out of there in time. I feel terribly sorry for what happened to this terrific teacher and she will be deeply missed, but I have found a wonderful substitute. I could convince Professor Zabini to join our staff as the new Defense against the Dark Arts-teacher."

The dark man stood up for a moment and made a formal bow to the welcoming applause and wolf whistles that followed.

"Zabini? Allisons dad?" Lily asked, looking surprised as she was clapping her hands together.

Mary shook her head in amazement, shrugged and as the noise slowly died away, focused on Dumbledore again.

"Finally I would like to say that Mr. Filch added more products to his list of banned items. Anyone who would like to learn more about which products Mr. Filch is referring to, is welcome to ask him any time. However, although there are many other things left to be said, now is not the place, nor the time."

He smiled and clapped his hands. Within the blink of an eye, every table in the Great Hall was filled with plates of delicious food and drinks.

"FINALLY!" Peter roared. He was the first one to load his plate with roasted pork, Yorkshire Pudding and stew, and started to stuff the food into his mouth at an alarming rate.

"Take it easy, Pete, the food isn't running run anywhere," James noted with a grin on his face.

"Are you actually going to finish all of that?" a voice from behind Peter interrupted dreamily. It was Nearly-Headless Nick, who had floated over to James and lowered himself down next to him.

Peter swallowed, took a large swig from his goblet of pumpkin juice to clean his mouth and shot the Gryffindor House Ghost a daring look. "That's right, Nick. Tell you what, if I'm still hungry after devouring this, I might go for another round."

"That's just repulsive," Nick replied while rolling his eyes and taking a glide towards a couple of fourth year Gryffindors, joining in on their conversation instead.

"I wouldn't refer to that as repulsive," Sirius said, grinning. "Admirable is more like it."

Peter shrugged and continued to eat. They all followed his example and enjoyed the delicious welcoming feast that the House-elves had prepared for them. By the time they got to the desserts, they were discussing Billings's death. "I mean, what were they thinking?" James was saying. "Robbing Gringotts, that's practically impossible."

"And it's not like they succeeded," Brice noted.

"Hang on, are we talking about the same thing here?" Mary asked, shooting her friend an incredulous look. "In case you hadn't noticed, every single one of those Death Eaters managed to disapparate before an Auror had arrived on the scene."

"Aha yes," James replied, "but they weren't exactly able to get their hands on whatever they were looking for. I can only imagine how Voldemort responded by the time his little servants dared to return to him empty-handed."

"You know what's been on my mind ever since?" Lily suddenly asked while pushing her only half-finished plate of trifle to the centre of the table. "Did you guys notice what types of wizards and witches are disappearing and being killed the most in these attacks?"

"Muggle-borns," Remus said softly. "People like-"

"Me and Mary, that's right. I know nothing is going to happen to us at Hogwarts, but this will be our last year. What if things have not settled down by the time we graduate?"

Nobody really knew how to answer that question and neither did they want to think about scenario until they had to. Peter was about to open his mouth and say something reassuring, but he was interrupted by McGonagall who appeared right next to their table. "Potter, Evans, I hope you enjoyed your dinner. It is time to discuss your new duties as Headboy- and Girl. Please follow me to my office."

"Bye, guys," James said quietly as he got up from his seat and followed Lily and McGonagall out of the Great Hall, leaving the others to ponder their thoughts.

Remus sighed eventually and looked at Mary. "But it is awful, isn't it? Killing off people just because of their ancestry... Ridiculous." He shook his head.

Brice huffed and crossed her arms. "I think it's _sick_. And all because those ancient wizarding families prefer keeping things "pure". A lot of them agree with Voldemort, you know; they seem to believe all of this Death Eaters crap is just fantastic."

Sirius had been remarkably quiet throughout dinner, playing more with his rabbit stew and hasbrowns than actually eating it, but he finally looked up to respond: "Not _all_ families."

"What do you mean?"

"There are still quite many pureblood families who don't side with Voldemort or his ideas. Not my own family, though. They're all a bunch of wankers, although there is one exception. My cousin Andromeda believes Voldemort is a deranged lunatic. According to her, he should be sent off to Azkaban and have Dementors not only guarding him 24/7, but also sit on his face in turns."

Peter and Remus burst out laughing and Brice chuckled. Even Mary could not help but snort; the image of a Dementor sitting on Voldemort's face was highly amusing.

"However," Sirius continued more seriously, "But I have to say my parents are the worst. I've been arguing with them for years, but ever since Voldemort is truly on the rise, it has gotten worse."

"Is that why they kicked you out?" Peter asked bluntly.

A very awkward silence followed, in which no one quite knew how to respond at first. They all stared at Sirius, who was glaring at Peter over his goblet of pumpkin juice, but he was not saying anything either. Peter seemed to understand he had made a big mistake by revealing Sirius's new orphaned status and started to apologize, but he was cut off interrupted by a concerned-looking Mary. "Is that true? You got thrown out by your own parents?"


	6. If Looks Could Kill

**Chapter Six: If Looks Could Kill**

Sirius was in a what you would call an undesirable position. Peter had just confessed to the entire table that Sirius was no longer part of the proud and pureblood-loving Black family: breaking news he had not wanted to become public that soon. And he did not really know how to deal with this right now. Obviously lying was not an option, but he was not all that keen on discussing the derailed relationship with his parents with his classmates at dinner either. Once again there was a familiar ache near his heart which he never seemed able to control, but he successfully pushed that feeling to the back of his mind by focusing on Peter. Sirius was about to transfigure him into a Flobberworm, but as soon as he looked at his little friend's anxious face, he felt his anger slipping away rapidly. It was simply impossible to hold a grudge against Peter.

So instead, he stared down at his goblet for a moment, whirled it around on the table while wrecking his mind to come up with an excuse and then finally decided to come clean anyway. "They didn't need to. One night I simply had enough of it and I just… left. My parents weren't sorry to watch me get my stiff and leave." He shrugged. "I reckon it must have been the happiest day of their lives to finally be liberated from their disgraceful son," he added in a sour voice.

Once again the aches returned and he shook his head to get rid of them. His friends were all quiet, but he knew they were watching him. When he finally looked up from staring down at his goblet, the first gaze he met was Mary's. And for once her eyes were not filled with disgust or hatred, but sincere concern. In that one second their eyes locked and he failed to completely suppress his true feelings, she looked right through him. "Oh Sirius," she said softly. "I'm so sorry."

Sirius quickly looked away. He could not take her concern or pity. No one was supposed to know that his parents turning their back on him fore good was affecting him more than he expected. He firmly told himself to get a grip and shot her a daring look. "Sirius? Whatever happened to calling me Black?"

For a moment Mary seemed taken aback by this sudden change of mood. She blinked. "So you don't want to talk about it? Your call. But there's no need to snap at me like that."

He sighed impatiently. "Fine, whatever. Look, can we just _leave_ it?"

"Fine."

Sirius turned around in his seat and glanced over at the Slytherin table where his younger brother Regulus was hanging out with his friends. The boy did not seem the least bothered that his older, now disowned brother was present in the very same hall. Then again, Regulus had never agreed with Sirius in the first place; he preferred not hurting their mother's feelings. Sirius assumed Regulus had started moving his stuff into his old room the second Sirius slammed the front door shut behind him.

But despite everything, even now, Sirius could not help but feel responsible for his little brother. He feared Regulus was foolish enough to join the Death Eaters as soon as he graduated from Hogwarts, for the single reason he would continue to impress his parents and honor their heritage. And although Sirius loathed Regulus with a passion at the moment, he would do anything to prevent that from happening.

Meanwhile, Mary was studying her fingernails with a moody expression on her face. Peter, Remus and Brice seemed to made a silent agreement that staying out of this squabble was the best thing to do. Once again, an awkward silence came over their end of the Gryffindor table, until a black girl with a spectacular Afro-hairdo was flopping down right on the edge of the table. It was Allison Zabini, a fellow seventh year and probably student from Slytherin who was able to do such a thing without being jinxed immediately. Somewhere along the road, Allison had decided Gryffindors were not her enemy and both Hogwarts Houses had accepted this unusual behavior. The Marauders and the girls tolerated Allison (they even liked her) and the Slytherins did not hate her for occasionally hanging out with the Gryffindors.

"Hullo!" she called cheerfully and was greeted inreturn by a wall of tense silence. "Whoah, who died?"

Remus was the first one to break the silence. "Hi Allison, no one did. Well, besides Professor Billings that is."

Allison nodded. "Yeah, poor thing. Did you guys hear she had the entire cover of _Basic Hexes for the Busy and Vexed_ printed on her face by the time they managed to heave that closet?"

Brice burst out laughing but tried to stifle her giggle as soon as possible. "I'm so-ho-orry, that's not fun-ny."

Allison sniggered and winked at Brice. "Actually, it is. Imagine how that must have looked. Well, gotta dash. Slughorn is having another one of his Slughorn meetings." She wrinkled her nose. "Somehow I never understood why they are supposed to be fun."

She jumped off the table and was about to leave when she was stopped by Mary asking: "Hey, that new Defense-professor... Is that your father?"

"Uncle. Nice fellow, although he can get carried away when he's talking about his own achievements. Just expect lots of personal stories in class about how he defeated the Peruvian Vipertooth of Ayacucho." She arched an eyebrow. "Fun, eh? Anyway, I'm getting late. I should go. Oh, before I forget: congratulate both James and Lily on making it as Headboy- and girl, okay?"

"Will do," Mary nodded.

Alison waved before hurrying out of the Hall. "Well," Remus said, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to the Common Room." He stretched lazily and got up.

"I'll join you," Peter said.

Sirius merely nodded and followed their example, still weary of opening his mouth. Mary exchanged a glance with Brice, who shrugged and mimicked it might be best to not say anything. Mary rolled her eyes, but obeyed and kept her mouth shut. As the three boys walked towards the end of the Great Hall, Mary was about to say something about it to Brice, when she noticed something from the corner of her eye.

"Sirius! Hey Sirius, over here!" a loud and high-pitched girl's voice resounded through the hall. Sirius looked around and shot his million dollar smile at -

Cassidy Donaldson, a dense, but pretty sixth year Hufflepuff student. Last semester he decided that even though Cassidy did not appear to have a brain whatsoever, she looked rather cute. So he went out with her, for about a week or so. By then her brainless gabble about which hair ribbons were out of fashion this season started to bug him so much he dumped her. But somehow she never really got the message.

At this very moment she decided to fling his arms around his neck and push her lower body against his hips. She whispered into his ear she would love to spend more time with him a distant broom cupboard, and whether he was interested in meeting up later tonight? Not particularly, no. There was only one girl on his mind at the moment. However, Cassidy did not need to know that. If things did not work out with Mary in the end, he could always come back to her for some uncomplicated snogging.

For a split second he remembered his "act like Remus"-strategy, but decided that was not going to work for him anyway. He simply could not pull it off. Besides, if Mary was ever going to fall for him after all, it should be because he was being Sirius and not some weird Remus-clone. He tried looking at her before he realized Cassidy was still hanging from his neck. And she was waiting for an answer. So put her back down as gently as possible, smiled and said: "Sorry Cas, but I'm supposed to meet up with James. Maybe some other time, though."

And with that, he simply turned around and walked out of the Great Hall without looking back. Acting aloof to alert possibly interested girls he might not be interested in them was one of the best ways to ensure they would keep chasing him for attention. "I hope you were paying attention, Wormtail," he sniggered as the three friends were heading up the stairs to the Gryffindor Common Room.

"Come again?"

"Oh, never mind. You're hopeless."

* * *

Meanwhile, Mary and Brice had also just left the Great Hall. They were just passing Cassidy, who had sat back down and placed her head on her arms. She was pouting while listening to heartening things her friends were saying. Mary could not help but smile gleefully. "Merlin, that girl is such a retard. I wonder when she will finally get it into her thick head that Black simply had his fun with her and is moving on, just like he did with every other girl who was stupid enough to go out with him."

"Me, you mean," Brice replied dryly.

"Well... Yeah, you too. I still cannot believe he ditched you for that Beauxbatons-girl. What was her name again, Melanie?"

"Stephanie. Look, I haven't been bothered by this for a long time. I've moved on. Hello? It's been two years. What I don't get is why you're still getting your wand in a knot over this."

Mary muttered something intelligible.

"What was that?"

"Nothing… Never mind."

Brice sighed and they continued to climb the stairs in silence. When they had finally reached the portrait of the Fat Lady, Mary realized that she did not even know how to get inside. "Brice, we don't have the new password."

"Yeah, we do. James told me at dinner. Hornbeam", she told the Fat Lady in a clear voice.

The woman in the portrait smiled down at them and after a cheerful "Welcome back, ladies", she swung forward to let them inside. When Mary and Brice entered the Common Room, they spotted the four Marauders, all sitting on the comfortable couch and arm chairs near the fireplace, where the house-elves had prepared a nice crackling fire. Lily was stretched out on the ground right in front of the fireplace. James was just explaining their duties as Headboy- and Girl, which mostly contained of a lot of patrolling at night, but they were also in charge of organizing school parties. Mary sat down cross-legged across from Lily and leaned her back against Remus's arm chair. "How are you feeling?"

Lily shrugged. "I'm alright. This past hour with James has been really nice, actually. I hardly recognized him at first to tell you the truth. He has become a lot more mature over the Summer."

She looked at James, who at that very second was proudly saying that as Headboy, he also had the power to give detentions to students and that this "gift" could become especially convenient whenever Snivellus was being a pain in the ass. Lily closed her eyes for a moment. "Of course, some of that old repulsive behavior does break through occasionally," she muttered darkly.

Mary laughed. She looked around the room, checking out the group of shy first-years in the corner, but for some reason her eyes happened to go back to Sirius almost straight away. Normally he would have been in the centre of the conversation and demand most of the attention, but now he happened to be merely looking at James with an absent - and fake - smile on his face. Mary remembered he had walked out on his own parents again and wondered if Lily knew. "Lil?"

"Hmmm?"

"Can I talk to you for a sec?"


	7. Forgiveness And Stuff

**Chapter Seven - Forgiveness and Stuff**

"Sure, what's up?"

"Not here. Let's go to our room."

Lily frowned at her with a somewhat concerned expression on her face. "Mare, are you alright?"

She smiled and nodded, reassuring it had nothing to do with her. "Of course, I'm fine. I just want to discuss something with you. But not here."

Lily nodded, still looking a bit puzzled as they crawled up from the floor. They told the guys and Brice they were calling it a night and going to bed. Everybody told them goodnight except James, who merely raised a hand and waved absent-mindedly while continuing his passionate monologue on his latest Headboy-plan to throw the biggest Christmas party Hogwarts had ever seen.

Sirius on the other hand did not seem be there at all. He was also no longer trying to listen to James, but stared into the fire with a gloomy look on his face. Lily, who was still watching James with a (surprisingly) amused look on her face, did not notice any of this. But it was Sirius's sour expression that convinced Mary she was going to do the right thing by confiding in Lily and telling her what had happened to him over the Summer.

She pulled her best friend by the arm and the two girls walked up the stairs to their dormitory in silence, passing a group of chatting fourth years on their way. Their dormitory was near the very top of the tower and when they walked inside, they noticed the elves had already put their trunks in front of their beds; ready to be unpacked.

Mary's cat Coco was snoozing on her pillow. Mary walked over to her four-poster bed, flopped down on the edge and started scratching the cat behind the ears, which made her roll over and start to purr contently. Lily decided to sit down on her own bed, which was right next to Mary's one. "So what did you want to talk about?"

Mary sighed and gave Coco a tiny peck on the head before looking up at her friend. "Tonight at dinner, after you and James had left with McGonagall, something happened."

Lily looked intrigued. "What?"

"Well, basically we continued talking about why Death Eaters are so keen on attacking Muggle-borns. Brice blamed the old pureblood crazy families and said they were the ones responsible for Voldemort's rise in popularity. But then... Did you not notice Sirius was awfully quiet tonight?"

She shrugged. "Now that you mention, yeah, I guess he was. Why?"

Mary shifted back on her bed and crossed her legs while leaning backwards against one of the poles. "He did mention something disturbing about his family later on."

Lily arched an eyebrow. "About the Blacks being fond of their pureblood status? That's no news to anyone, rather a well-known fact."

"I know, but then Peter blurted out something stupid and Sirius got all... Well… Lil, exactly how often have you been writing him this past Summer?"

"Three or four times, I don't really remember."

"And he was with the Potters the entire time?"

"Yes, he usually spends his Summers with James. Why d'you ask?"

Mary frowned while thoughtfully stroking Coco's back. "And he never mentioned anything about his parents to you...Nothing at all?"

"No. Look," she said, getting impatient, "are you going to tell me what this is about or not?"

Mary hardly noticed the impatience in Lily's voice as she continued stroking Coco for a moment. Her mind could have been miles away. So Sirius had not said anything to Lily about walking out on his family, which did not really surprise her all that much. Sirius just was not one of those guys who had no trouble sharing their thoughts and inner musings with their friends. However, Mary knew what she saw in that one moment they had looked at each other at dinner: Sirius was in pain even though he rather not say anything about it.

But Mary still firmly believed he would feel better if he talked to someone. For obvious reasons that person could not be her and she did not think Brice would be up for offering that much support either. And of the three of them, he was obviously closest to Lily. "Sirius's parents disowned him," she said as she was lifting Coco and putting the cat down on her lap. "They basically made it impossible for him to stay there any longer."

"Oh." Lily was silent for a moment and rubbed her nose. "Well, no surprises there. We all knew it would come to something like this in the end. Sirius always hated being at Grimmauld Place."

"That may be, but he just looked so depressed. Of course he was trying to hide it and did a tremendous job at playing cool, but there was had one weak moment and that's when I figured it out. He's in pain, Lil, I really think you should talk to him."

Lily was thoughtfully playing with her necklace when she said: "As far as I know Sirius doesn't exactly enjoy talking about his relatives and we're not _that _close. I think all he needs is some time and space."

"But-"

"-Besides," she continued stubbornly while narrowing her eyes at Mary, "you don't even like him. Why do you care so much?"

That was a good question. She had been wondering why the fact Sirius walking out on his family was affecting her so much. The only reason Mary could think of was that she had grown up in a really close family. Both her parents had always been very supportive of her being a witch or anything else she did or wanted to do. She could not imagine them kicking her out of their house. And Mary was very proud of Jenna, her younger sister. The little girl was also a witch and would be coming to Hogwarts next year. But if she was being truly honest with herself, Mary realized she was mostly just feeling bad for Sirius. No matter the womanizing prat he used to be, no one – not even someone as arrogant as Sirius Black - deserved to be treated like this by his own parents. She shrugged. "Because even though he can be a total ass, he didn't deserve any of this. No one does."

Lily shot her a shrewd look. "You sure, Mare? Because if you ask me, you're about to fall for him after all."

"_Me_? Never!" Mary cried, who quickly picked up her pillow and chucked it straight at her friend's face to distract her from noticing that Mary's cheeks were beet red. The sudden movement caused Coco to slide off the bed. The cat flicked her tail in an annoyed manner, jumped right on top of the window-sill and flopped down there instead.

In the meantime Lily had grabbed her wand. She was charming the pillow so it would chase its owner around the room. A grinning Mary had to duck several times and eventually hide behind her trunk in order to not be hit by her own pillow. She watched Lily change into her pyjamas before deciding that, now she was in a good hiding place, it would be safe to change the subject. "And that was coming from you, miss "Potter, I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it!"

Now it was Lily's turn to blush. After she carefully straightened her pillow and had crawled into bed, she said: "I suppose you're right. Today I realized James freaking Potter can actually be a nice and charming guy, without acting like an arrogant prat who curses anyone who bores him or has the annoying habit of asking me out by shouting the invitation throughout the Great Hall."

"And today I found out that beyond Sirius Back's infamous arrogant personality, there might be a real person hiding in there with actual feelings," Mary replied as she finished changing into her pyjamas and climbed into her bed while trying to wrestle down her pillow. _And with the most incredible smile I've ever seen_.

"You know what," Lily said as she lazily flicked her wand to lift the charm on the pillow. 'Maybe those guys aren't so bad after all. Maybe we should give them a break."

Mary shrugged before bursting out laughing.

"What?" Lily asked curiously.

"I just realized we have been calling them by their first names the entire time."

Lily snorted. "How odd. It could be a sign. Clearwater (their Divination professor at Hogwarts) would probably think it is."

Mary, who did not think much of professor Clearwater _or_ Divination, huffed. "She's just an old hag with a good judge of character. But... Okay, here's the deal. From now on, I'll try really hard to be nicer Sirius, as long as you promise to not snap at James, no matter what happens."

"Deal!" Lily replied grinning and she held out her hand to seal their agreement. Mary reached out her arm too so she could shake her friend's hand, but the distance between their beds was so big that their fingertips only touched each other briefly.

They both laughed. At that very moment, the door opened and a sniggering Brice walked in. Lily sat up straight and asked their what was so funny. "Oh, you're gonna kill James, Lily. He is now convinced this year's Christmas Ball should be a costume party. But that's not it: he's boasting the two of you will be named the "Royal Couple". The King and Queen of house-elves, that is."

Lily frowned. "Why in the name of Merlin-"

"No wait, you didn't hear the best part yet. Since you'll be house-elf royalty, you should be wearing exactly the same clothes as your noble subjects. Everyone down in the Common Room are up for it. Most of them guys, come to think of it," she said thoughtfully while flopping down on her bed. "Heh, I bet they just cannot wait to see you wearing nothing more than a tablecloth!"

She burst out laughing again when she noticed the horrorstruck look on Lily's face. Mary on the other hand was just remembering the pact they had made mere moments ago and started to laugh hysterically. Because no matter how Lily really felt about James's latest stupid move, she could never really give him a piece of her mind.


	8. Sense And Sensitivity

**Chapter Eight - Sense and Sensitivity**

The next morning Mary woke up rather early. She sat up straight in her four-poster bed, stretched her arms and glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 6.07 AM. Mary groaned and allowed herself to lie down. She tried to doze off for a moment, but felt so awake that after rolling over a couple of times, decided it would be better to take a shower and get dressed now after all.

Mary grabbed some clean clothes from her trunk and tiptoed across the room, determined not to wake Lily and Brice who were still soundly asleep. She jumped into the shower and enjoyed the feel of the hot water running down her body, but when she was about to rinse the shampoo from her hair, she was interrupted by a loud mewing. It was Coco, trying to get her attention so Mary would let her out of the dormitory.

Contrary to the Common Room, which had a little hole in the wall next to the portrait entrance, there was no such thing in their dormitories. So basically, their pets were stuck in there until their bosses (or the cleaning House-elves) would let them out. And Coco was really anxious to get out right now.

"Shhhhh," Mary hissed. "I'll let you out as soon as I'm done here. Can't you see I'm washing my hair?"

Even if Coco understood her, the cat certainly did not seem to care. At this point she had started mewing so loudly Mary feared it would wake Lily and Brice and, considering the sheer volume Coco was producing, the entire Gyffindor Tower as well.

"One minute?" she pleaded desperately.

"Miaow!"

It was unbelievable to see how much noise could come from such a tiny animal. And the fact that the mewing sound was bouncing on the bathroom walls was not helping either. Mary sighed as she rolled her eyes, stepped out of the shower and quickly wrapped a towel around herself. "Happy now?" she snapped at Coco.

She picked up the cat, opened the dormitory door and hurried down the steps to the Common Room. Before she put down the, now slightly floundering, Coco, she sniped: "And you're staying out. I'm telling you, I don't want to see your hairy face back here before tonight. Got that?"

Coco simply mewed loudly, so Mary had no choice but to put her down and watch the cat race out of the Common Room at an alarming speed. "Stupid cat," Mary muttered darkly. She turned around to walk back up the stairs to her dormitory when she suddenly spotted someone on the other end of the Common Room.

Oh no. _Oh no oh no oh no oh no._

It was Sirius. He was sitting at the reading table, leaning back in his chair at ease and resting his feet on the table. He was holding a book he had been reading, but he was not looking at the pages now. Instead, he watched her with a smirk on his face that could have beaten Lockhart's Witch Weekly's winning smile any time.

Mary could not quite move. She was suddenly very aware of the fact that she was only wearing a short towel. She blushed furiously, while several drops of water from the tups of her hair were dripping onto the carpet.

Sirius grinned. "Morning."

He was shamelessly eyeing her from head to toe. Instinctively Mary crossed her arms to keep her breasts from view, even though they were safely covered by the towel. She cleared her throat. "Coco, my cat."

She pointed towards the hole where the cat had disappeared. As she was doing this, her towel started to slowly slide off, so she was forced to quickly wrap both her arms around her chest to prevent this from happening. "While I was in the shower, Coco wanted to get out. She started to make a lot of noise and I was afraid she would wake the others, you see, so I…"

"I can see why. Last I checked cats aren't fond of taking a shower."

"I wasn't giving my cat a bath! She was just in the bathroom trying to…" Mary stopped talking when she noticed the growing smirk on his face. "You think this is funny, don't you?"

"Yes," Sirius replied. "I can imagine worse ways to start my day." He was now staring at her legs.

She could almost feel him slowly undressing her with his eyes. She could not take any more of this. "I… I really should go upstairs. Put some clothes on…"

"Sure, if that's what you want."

Mary shot him one last look, pulled the towel down a few inches over her backside (just in case) and sprinted up the stairs without looking back. After entering her room, she closed the door and leaned back against it with her eyes closed. Why, _why_ were embarrassing things like this always happening to her?

"What are you doing?"

Mary opened her eyes and noticed Brice had also woken up. She was slightly frowning at the weird sight of her friend wearing nothing more than a short towel. Mary merely groaned in reply, stumbled back to her bed and flopped down (while still holding the towel in its place), burying her face in the pillow.

Brice walked up to her and sat down next to her. While continuing to brush her short hair, she looked down at Mary. "Spill," she said simply after another moment.

Mary muttered something unintelligible in her pillow.

"Mary, you're going to have to turn around because right now, I have no idea what you're talking about."

After another moment of breathing down into her pillow, which for some reason had a calming effect on her, Mary finally turned around. She stared at the ceiling of her four-poster bed before her mouth finally formed the word "Sirius".

Brice raised her eyebrows. "Yeeeeees?" she inquired carefully.

While Mary was filling in her friend on her latest embarrassing encounter with Sirius Black, Lily – who had also woken up – listened closely. When she had finished, Brice and Lily looked at each other for a moment before roaring with laughter.

"Stop that, it's not funny!" Mary called angrily.

"Oh, lighten up," Lily replied. "In a few days you'll be laughing over this too."

"I doubt any of you would be laughing if it had happened to you."

Brice laughed even harder.

"What?"

Brice wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Just imagine how this must have looked from Sirius's point of view. Here's a guy who was just peacefully sitting there reading a book. Then you come bolting down the stairs, soaking wet, wearing nothing more than a towel _and_ holding an annoyed cat in your arms. Come on, that sight must have been hilarious!"

"Hmmm," Lily said thoughtfully. "I wonder what Sirius was doing down there at this time of day."

"I don't care about why he was in the Common Room, I just wish he would not have been there at all," Mary replied testily before groaning and resting her face in her hands. "I'm telling you, it was _so_ embarrassing. This was worse than that time Madam Pince caught me and Jonathan snogging in the restricted area section and that when she wanted to chase us out, his hand got stuck behind the strap of my bra, so we had to "leave" the library in that position while being watched by a dozen students and McGonagall. This was definitely worse."

"You only think that because it just happened to you," Lily said wisely. "now just get dressed and come down to have breakfast with us. I promise if Sirius dares to say anything about it, I will slap him myself."

Mary nodded and got up from the bed. While she was dressing herself, she thought about what had just happened to her. By the time she had tied her hair in a loose bun, she already started to see that it was, in fact, a funny story. She even chuckled because of her own stupidity. Note to self: never, not even at 6.30 AM in the morning, head down to the Common Room when you're half naked.

She ran down the dormitory stairs for the second time that morning, and saw that Brice and Lily were waiting for her near the entrance. Thankfully, Sirius was not there. She assumed he and the other guys were already having breakfast. She turned out to be right. When the girls arrived in the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table, everything seemed fine at first. Not one of the guys said anything about the "towel-accident". Sirius must have kept it quiet.

When Mary had started putting some jam on her toast, she suddenly felt a lot better about him. If things would have been the other way and he would have walked in on her wearing nothing more than a towel around his waist (she realized part of her would not mind that at all), she would have told Lily and Brice immediately. Perhaps Lily was right about Sirius being a nice guy after all. But then, right when she was starting to feel more relaxed, James shot her a mischievous grin. "So Mary, I bet Brice must have told you all about the dress code at this year's Christmas party. Why else would you explain showing off your body in a succinct towel? Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining and I'm sure Sirius here isn't either-"

Sirius was shaking his head while putting his face in his hands and, oddly enough, looked nearly as embarrassed as Mary.

"-So that means Lily and a tablecloth, you and an almost non-existing towel. All we need now is to find a similar look for Brice."

Mary grinded her teeth, but was so annoyed with James she could not speak for a moment. Lily's emerald eyes glinted dangerously and she was about to respond furiously, when Brice saved the day (or peace, actually). "Oh, I don't know about that, James," she said serenely, pouring herself another cup of tea. "I was thinking of a dishcloth, but if you think that is _too_ succinct…"

They all laughed and even Mary could not help but grin as she tried to picture Brice in nothing more than a dishcloth. Lily's eyes on the other hand were still shooting daggers at James. "What on earth–," she started furiously.

But Mary interrupted her by clapping her hand over Lily's mouth. "Think of our agreement, Lil," she whispered. "You know the rules: no snapping."

Her redheaded friend - still looking more than annoyed – nodded and, to the visible relief of James, started to "murder" the orange she was peeling instead.


	9. Timetables And Other Revelations

**Chapter Nine – Timetables and Other Revelations**

A puzzled-looking Sirius watched a furious Lily chopping the poor orange on her plate into a dozen pieces. Apprehensively, his gaze slowly shifted towards Mary; it did not take long for him to determine she was annoyed by James's behavior, but Lily... Lily appeared to be in such a murderous state it affected the entire corner of the Gryffindor table. Nobody dared to speak a word. James, who by now also seemed to realize he had crossed a line, was looking at him and Remus to get some moral support, but Sirius was wary of getting into the middle of this, just like Remus, who merely shrugged and went back to talking to Peter.

They were talking in a quiet voice and it was almost impossible to make out what they were discussing. Sirius caught something about "Zabini" and "first lesson" and he soon concluded this conversation was not worth his attention. He noticed McGonagall had started handing out timetables to some younger Gryffindor students, but she was not quite near their end of the table yet.

He refilled his mug of coffee and added some sugar and milk. James always teased him about it, because he thought it was hilarious that a Black refused to drink black coffee, but honestly; black English coffee without any milk or sugar was simply disgusting.

He shot another careful look at Mary and noticed she was working on getting Lily to calm down. Even though she must be feeling very embarrassed, her initial anger seemed to have subsided somewhat. And she had not cast any infuriating looks into his direction (yet). He wondered if this meant she was finally warming up to him. He did not want to get his hopes up too high, but still... No death glares in his general direction was a definite improvement.

Sirius remembered how she had been standing before him wearing nothing more than that small towel just an hour ago. If he ever got his hands on that cat of hers before she did, he would _kiss_ it, he honestly would. That animal had given him the best possible start of a day. A girl with legs like hers; he could have been staring at those all day...

He sighed and was about to take another sip from his coffee when a kick against his right knee made him spill the hot beverage instead. He looked up, annoyed, and realizing he was staring straight at a beaming James. Sirius was not sure if he liked that look. What was he up to? Whenever his best mate was grinning like a fool, it was bound to have something to do with Lily Evans and that usually did not turn out well. Sirius watched James take a deep breath, and before he could have done anything about it, his friend turned to Lily and said: "You know, Evans, I may be able to talk the tablecloth-dress code out of the other Gryffindor boys heads, but-"

Sirius was now feeling more than alarmed. He was desperately trying to get James's attention by clearing his throat repeatedly and kicking him hard against the shins to stop him from making a fool of himself. His friend flinched, but continued nevertheless: "- there is something you'll have to do instead. Go on a date with me, just once. And we'll forget this dress code ever existed."

Sirius placed his hand under his chin and shot Remus and Peter "When is he ever going to learn?"-look before closing his eyes and waiting for Lily's inevitable snappy response. Which, oddly enough, never came.

"Er, thanks Potter but no thanks," she was saying with a tremendous effort to sound calm. "I don't need your permission when it comes to wearing a tablecloth to a ball and I _certainly_ will not go out with you because of that."

Sirius had opened his eyes halfway through Lily's reserved reply and was now looking at Mary; she was smiling down at her best friend with a satisfied and downright proud expression on her face while Brice was practically snorted her tea up her nose instead of drinking it.

"Okay, but then -" James said.

Sirius groaned and rolled his eyes. If James was about to say that in that case, the dress code for the ball was still on, he was going to _hex_ him. However, it would never come to that because at that very moment, McGonagall appeared at their end of the table with this year's timetables in her hands.

"Potter, Evans, Black, Woods and Lupin, I need you to listen closely. In your NEWT-year you will be following most classes together. Today, you will start with a double session of Potions with the Slytherins. ("Great," Sirius thought sourly. "Two full hours of having to stare at Snivellus's greasy face to start off the week). This afternoon, you will have Herbology with the Ravenclaws and Charms with the Hufflepuffs."

She handed them the timetables. Sirius noticed they would only have one class on Friday; two hours of Defense Against the Dark Arts, starting at 11 AM, which meant their weekends would start early. On the other hand, Mondays and Thursdays were particularly busy days with long classes.

Sirius was relieved he would be taking most of his classes with James and Remus. He knew why he and James were tackling so many difficult courses. Their ultimate goal was to get accepted at Auror Training next year, but they needed top grades to achieve that admission. And although they were some of the cleverest students in school, even they would have to work hard to become Aurors. Remus had not figured out if he would stand a chance getting accepted at the same program, being a Werewolf and all, so he was currently considering to become a Werewolf expert at the Ministry.

It was no secret which job Mary had in mind: Healing. Ever since their first year, she had been stating it was her destiny to heal people. To get admitted at the Healer Program at St. Mungo's, she needed E's in all her courses. Mary belonged to the top of her class in most courses, with one major exception: Potions. She simply was a dramatic Potions maker. Sirius knew for a fact she had only passed her Potions OWL, because Lily had been tutoring her for months before she was finally ready to take the exam. He wondered how much training she would need before she could take the NEWT-exam, which would be a lot more difficult.

And Lily... Perhaps it was obvious, but she really wanted to continue working on Potions. She was a true star when it came to Potions and outshone everyone else in that class, even Snivellus. If Sirius had to guess, she was dreaming of taking over from Slughorn if he ever decided to leave. But as far as he could see, their sluggy Potions Master was not planning his retirement anytime soon, so Lily may had to poison him in the end to get the job of her dreams.

Meanwhile, McGonagall was handing out Brice's timetable. "Miss McDonald, please note your Astronomy lessons will take place at the roof of the Western Tower from now on. And you will be following four classes of Ancient Runes and Arithmancy each every week."

This information would have seriously depressed Sirius, but not Brice. She beamed as she was looking down at her timetable. She was all about Arithmancy and Ancient Runes. Her dream was to work as a Curse-Breaker at Gringotts and you needed as much knowledge of those classes as possible to be admitted to that program. Brice always enjoyed solving all kinds of riddles. He remembered that in the short period they were dating, she sometimes preferred solving the Daily Prophet's crossword puzzle over some decent kissing in a distant broom cupboard.

"And finally, Mr. Pettigrew, here is your schedule. Not much has changed for you. Muggle Studies is your specialism, right? Well, everything seems to be in order," she concluded after she had studied Peter's timetable through her spectacles and handed it over to him.

Peter was the least clever member of their group, but as a pureblood he liked to study Muggles and apparently, he had a lot of fun in those classes. Personally Sirius could not be bothered with anything Muggle-related, but if it made Peter happy...

"I trust you all will be heading over to your first class of the year soon. Good luck and I will see you all in Transfiguration tomorrow afternoon. Good day."

"Good day, Professor," they all said and watched McGonagall walk back to the staff table.

"Shall we go then?" Remus asked, drumming his thumbs on the table.

"Great, a double class of Potions to start off my week. _Oh happy day_," Mary said sarcastically as she got up from her seat with a sigh.

"Don't worry, Mare, you'll be fine. And if not, I'll always be right there to help you out," Lily replied soothingly while patting her friend on the shoulder.

"Hey Evans! What if I need some help?" James asked loudly before Sirius or any of the other Marauders could stop him.

"I'm sure you'll manage just fine, like you always do," she said coolly before turning around and walking ahead of the others.

Sirius was about to try - for what he could swear was about the 7564379453th time - and talk some sense into his best mate, but he did not have to. Mary was still standing by the table, shaking her head as she stared at them. "James, when will you stop being such an obnoxious prat and start acting like the decent guy I know is there somewhere? Lily will never go out with you if you don't ask her out in a normal way." She looked at Sirius. "Have you, being the expert and all, never told him that?"

Sirius was too stunned by her unexpected sneer that he failed to give her a cunning reply. Mary, taking his lack of reply as silent consent, just shook her head and stalked off, determined to catch up with Lily, who by now was probably halfway the dungeons already.


	10. A Time To Hate

**Chapter Ten**

James Potter was an idiot. Mary didn't even mind that he made fun of her and this morning's towel-incident, because well, she could see what was so funny about that. What she did _not_ understand, was how silly James behaved whenever he was around Lily. He always seemed to think he knew how to charm her (without a wand) and he always got it wrong.

Mary knew perfectly well that it was only their agreement to treat the guys nicely that kept Lily from jinxing James. And her best friend always kept her promises, but Mary just hoped that James wouldn't do too many stupid things to try and impress Lily by behaving like a fool, but frankly, Voldemort would probably kiss a Muggle-born before that would happen.

If only he would listen to Sirius… A womaniser he might be, but at least he knew how to treat a girl. And honestly, asking someone out isn't all that hard. Just catch them at a time when they're alone, sit down, do some small-talk and then casually ask if they are interested in having a drink some day. Easy, there's nothing to it. But no, James always had to ask her out in public and behave like a complete moron.

Mary was now descending the stairs to the dungeons, but was so distraught that she hardly noticed where her feet were taking her. Maybe she should have a talk with James about this. She never had a serious chat about this with him before and perhaps...

"Hello stranger," a guy's voice sounded softly in her ear as he gently pulled her into a corridor where some of his friends were hanging out against one of the dungeon walls.

Jonathan McLaggen: seventh year-Ravenclaw and Quidditch-player. She had dated him for a while last year. With his blonde curls and hazel eyes, he was good-looking and intelligent, but he was also extremely jealous. In fact, he had gotten slightly obsessed with her in the end. When he demanded an explanation and simply exploded just because Mary had gone to Hogsmeade with Remus (all they did was walking to the village together, nothing more) instead of him, she just had it and dumped him on the spot. But he just wouldn't leave her alone.

"Hi Jonathan," Mary said coolly, removing his arms from her waist.

"Why being so cold, Mary? Haven't you missed me at all this Summer?" said Jonathan as he tried to get his arms back around her.

She pushed him away. "No."

"Liar."

She sighed. "No Jonathan, I haven't missed you. In fact, breaking up with you has made me really happy and might have been the best decision I made all year."

She turned around to leave when Jonathan roughly grabbed her by the wrist. He pulled her close in a hard-handed way and said: "You say that now, Mary, but we are made for each other, you and I. I know it and time will come for you to see that as well. Until that day comes, I will be waiting. Because that's –" He pulled her even closer so that his face was only inches away "- how loyal I am to you."

Mary glared back furiously and although Jonathan still had a firm grip on her, she had one free hand left. For a moment she considered jinxing him, but she couldn't reach within her robes, so she decided to go for the next best thing instead.

SMACK!

She slapped him hard against the cheek. He immediately let go of her, but she wasn't quite done with him yet. She quickly thrust her knee upwards and hit Jonathan where it really hurts. He crashed down onto the floor swearing. His friends looked at each other, wondering whether they should do something about this or not at first, but in the end they just decided to witness the scene with amused looks on their faces.

"Ouch! What did you do that for?" Jonathan called.

"The slap was for pulling me into a dodgy corridor out of nowhere and the knee was for pulling me close and treating me like I'm your possession. Which I am not, obviously. We're over, Jonathan. We have been over ever since the end of last year. Get over it."

She was about to walk off when she thought of something else. "Oh, and if you _ever_ touch me like that again, I will semi-permanently transfigure you into a cockroach."

Mary ran back to the main corridor feeling a bit stressed and when she was getting closer to the dungeon of the Potions classroom, she had started to pant slightly. When she rounded the corner, she ran in on James, Sirius and Remus, who immediately noticed something was amiss.

"Everything alright, Mary?" Remus, frowning at her.

"Oh yeah, everything's fine now. It wasn't so fine about a minute ago but now I'm fine. Totally fine, yes. Shall we go? Or do you guys want to be late for class?" she replied a little too quickly and slightly out of breath.

The three of them glared at her suspiciously and neither of them moved an inch. James stepped up next to her. "What happened to you?" he inquired.

"Nothing big, but I got briefly abducted by Jonathan and his gang. He kept on nagging about us and that we should get back together and when I kindly declined, he grabbed me and –"

"He did WHAT?" Sirius roared.

Mary shot him a startled look. "It wasn't that bad. Anyway, he pulled me close, but after threatening that I should really consider taking him back he let me go."

Sirius looked at her for a few seconds and then, making up his mind, turned around to walk in the direction of Jonathan's corridor, but he got held back by Remus.

"Padfoot, think about this."

"Let go off me, Moony."

"It's a bit early to get a detention, don't you think? The lessons haven't even started yet."

"This will be worth getting a detention for," Sirius snarled

He tried to push Remus aside, but his friend was a lot stronger than he appeared to be.

"Sirius," he said warningly.

"That guy should keep his hands off Mary! He has no right to touch her and if my fists are going to have to make that clear to him, then so be it!"

"Hang on," Mary interrupted. "You don't have to make that clear to him, Sirius. I'm a big girl and I think I can convince him myself, thank you very much."

He looked at her. "Are you sure? Because if he hurt you in _any_ way..."

"Actually, I think I did more damage to him than he did to me. You should ask his private parts, I'm sure they would agree."

Sirius, James and Remus roared with laughter. "Alright then. I should have known you can take care of yourself," Sirius chuckled.

"Yes, I should think so," Mary replied with twinkling eyes. "After all, it's not the Middle Ages anymore. But if I ever get bothered by a guy again, I will definitely think of you. I've always wanted a personal bodyguard."

"Fair enough," Sirius grinned.

The four of them set off to the Potions classroom together. "But seriously," James said. "If that oaf ever does something to you, tell me. I'm Head Boy after all. I could give him the worst punishment imaginable." He thought for a moment. "Like pickling salamander brains or cleaning the owlery floor with a single toothbrush."

Mary laughed. "Yeah, that would be cool. But are you sure that you secretly can't wait to apply your Head Boy authority as much as you can?"

James chuckled. "Well, that too. I can't wait to use my new power and that Jonathan would be the perfect victim."

At that time Severus Snape – carrying pots full of pickled rat brains and wormwood – ran past them and pushed Remus roughly aside in the process.

"Hey watch it!" Remus called after him, but Snape did not look back.

James glared at Snape's back. "Then again, Jonathan might get off the hook if I can get my hands on _him_ first," he growled.

They had arrived at the Potions class. Most of their classmates were already unpacking their potion kits and Snape was standing at Professor Slughorn's desk showing him the full jar of pickled rat brains. Lily was sitting at an empty table near the back and since there were four spare seats left, they all made their way to her. As Mary dropped her back on the table and bent over to tell Lily about what happened with Jonathan (she alsoimmediately suggested to use her Head Girl rights to punish him), she noticed that Sirius was whispering something into James's ear. James nodded, looking serious, and then said hesitantly: "Eh Lily, about this morning–"

Lily looked up, shooting him a weary look.

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I was a complete jerk and I owe you an apology."

A tiny smile crept over Lily's fair face. "Just one?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Good point," James answered, grinning sheepishly, clearly relieved that Lily was forgiving him. "Countless apologies for my rude and disrespectful behaviour over the last six years. But in my defense, I had your best interests at heart. And if you still want to come to the Ball in a tablecloth, I promise I shall not protest in any way."

Now Lily actually laughed. "Enough about the tablecloth already! But alright, apology accepted."

Mary couldn't believe her own ears. Lily was forgiving James for everything he did to her over the past few years? What was going on here? She must have been starting to really like him.

Then she looked at Sirius, who was smiling at her and cocked his head over to Lily and James who were now planning their first schedule of patrolling at night. When she looked back at Sirius, he arched his eyebrows, clearly signalling "this is because I talked to him".

Once again, he looked very presumptuous doing so, but this time Mary noticed that it wasn't bothering her that much. On the contrary, she realized that she thought that arrogant look made him look extremely sexy.

End of Update


	11. A Revealing Potion

**A/N: Contrary to how it may seem, I do like to get reviews. In fact, the more the merrier, haha. So don't be afraid to leave a comment once in a while, whether it be positive or negative. I won't bite, promise ;) Mara **

**Chapter Eleven**

Over the next two months, things were kind of quiet. Jonathan seemed to be accepting that they were really over and had moved on. At least that's what Mary thought he was doing; she had spotted him by the courtyard fountain the other day with Stacy Sweeting sitting on his lap. They seemed to be having a good time and Mary was happy for both of them. She was on a roll in most of her classes. Determined to get accepted at the St. Mungo's Healer Program, she had to achieve E's on all her NEWT's at the very least, or higher. And by the looks of it, she had a good chance on getting an O in Defense Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration.

She'd always been excellent at Defense, but during their last Transfiguration lesson, McGonagall even complimented her on being able to transfigure her own arm into a hawk's talon and back. So far only Remus had managed to do that as well. Admittedly, Mary was sure James and Sirius could have easily pulled it off if they had been paying attention. But they had been too busy on conjuring a lizard out of thin air and lowering it into Leslie Jefferson's hat instead. Which of course resulted in a raging lecture from McGonagall and week's detention for the two of them, but lets not get into that.

Speaking of Sirius, Mary didn't really know what to think of him. Part of her still believed he was an arrogant prat who swapped girls sooner than his underwear. But a growing part of her didn't hate him any longer and seemed to think he became more handsome every day, especially when rays of sunlight illuminated those few light brown locks in his dark hair... 

Anyway, she wasn't ready to express those feelings to anyone. Not to Sirius (the fear of how she was going to react if he would ask her out was increasing every day), not Lily and Brice, not even herself. Some day she was definitely going to, when she had made up her mind. Which wasn't happening anytime soon, she would make sure of that.

Besides, she had no time to be falling for guys anyway. This was her NEWT-year and school was the _only_ thing that mattered. Becoming a Healer was all she ever wanted and nothing, certainly not Sirius Black, could come between that. She had always known that she was destined to become a healer.

For one, her entire family was made out of doctors. Muggle-doctors of course, but that made Mary even more eager to become a magical Healer. To look at healing from a magical point of view should be fascinating. And two, even Mr. Olivander, the wandmaker where she bought her wand, said that if she got picked by a powerful wand like hers, she must have a real talent for healing. After all, her wand (rosewood, 14 inches) was particularly suitable for healing spells.

So over all, she was right on schedule to get into the Healing Program... If it weren't for that blasted Potions. She was a complete disaster at brewing drafts. Right now for example, they were supposed to brew Amortentia, a powerful love potion that should look pearly white and spread a delicious smell which was different to every individual. But something must have gone terribly wrong, because her potion looked a grubby grey and dispersed the penetrating smell of rotten eggs.

She noticed that Slughorn was currently examining the potions on the table next to them, so she desperately tried to reread the instructions through the thick grey smelling cloud of steam that was circling from her potion.

Sirius, who was standing next to her, coughed when the stinking spiral of steam reached his nostrils. "Merlin's beard, Mary," he said while he pinched his nose. "What happened to your Amortentia?"

"I don't know," Mary said, looking flustered. She desperately stirred the potion a couple of times, trying to change the colour, but it was no good.

She was starting to feel nauseated because of the sickening smell. There was no way she could ask Lily for help, because her friend had just gone to the bathroom. James and Remus were still adding ingredients to their own potions, whereas Sirius had already finished his (of course it looked perfectly pearly white). She didn't have no choice...

"Help me," she whispered pleadingly.

Sirius stared at her for a second. She could see that he was considering doing nothing for a moment, because it was always very amusing to witness Slughorn making fun of Mary's poor brewing.

"Please?"

Sirius glanced at Slughorn and, establishing that their Professor was still examining Snape's (probably perfectly brewed) draft, he said: "Okay."

He quickly made his way to her and, trying to wave away some of the obstinate rotten egg-smell that was surrounding her cauldron, examined her potion. "It looks like you've added either too many or too few ingredients."

"That's not possible. I checked and double-checked the instructions. Two valerian roots, one salamander heart, three skinned treefrog legs, one drop of asfaloth juice -"

"Seven drops," Sirius interrupted, looking up at her from the smoking cauldron.

"No, one drop. Look what Slughorn wrote down on the blackboard."

"That would be seven drops of asfaloth juice."

"That's not a seven, that's a one."

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "You think I'd be right, considering the different state of our potions. Unless you get a get a romantic kick out off the smell of rotten eggs..."

Mary snorted. "Good point."

She noticed that Slughorn was done with loudly praising Snape for making a perfect Amortentia and was now making his way towards their table, so she started to freak out. "Oh no, he's coming," she hissed in alarm. "What am I going to do?" She groaned. "I'm doomed."

"You're not _doomed_. It's going to be fine, look -" He quickly added six drops of asfaloth juice to her potion. The fluid instantly made a loud hissing sound and turned into a perfect pearly white. The smell of rotten eggs vanished and got replaced by a mixture of delicious smells. Mary breathed in deeply and smelled all kinds of things she liked: freshly mown grass, the old stable near her parents house, something musky, sandalwood, roses and lavender.

At that moment Slughorn arrived at their table and as he saw that Sirius and Mary standing next to each other, lifted his eyebrows in surprise (even the Professors knew that Sirius Black and Mary Woods didn't like each other) and noted: "You two teaming up there?"

Sirius laughed. "No sir"," he replied casually and walked back to his own cauldron. He then watched how Slughorn was examining his Amortentia. "Almost perfect, as always Mr. Black. Good job," the Potions Master said contently.

"Thank you, sir," Sirius said, grinning confidently.

When Slughorn was turning around to look at James and Remus's cauldrons, Lily finally returned from the bathroom. "Phew, just in time I see. Did he take a look at my cauldron yet?"

"No, not yet," Mary replied.

"Everything alright here? How's your potion doing?" She looked down at Mary's cauldron and her jaw dropped in surprise. "Mare, this is fantastic! Did you do all that by yourself?"

"Eh..."

"Yep," Sirius replied before Mary could have said anything. "If you ask me, she's really getting the hang of it."

Lily beamed at her, looking really proud, and Mary didn't have the hart to tell her the awful truth. Instead she shot a look at Sirius, who winked at her. She smiled back weakly.

"Ah Miss Evans, once again you have exceeded yourself," Slughorn said loudly as he was examining Lily's potion. This is the most perfect Amortentia I ever saw from the hands of a student. It's even better than Snape's. Brilliant," he said, beaming at Lily. "Oh m'girl, if only you would attend another Slug Club-meeting once in a while, then we could-"

"Not before Peeves is becoming well-mannered, sir."

"I should have known, Miss Evans," Slughorn sniggered. Then he looked at Mary who was anxiously waiting next to her cauldron, fidgeting with the hem of her sleeves.

"Would it be safe for me to come near your cauldron, Miss Woods? Or shall I put on a protective mask first?"

The class sniggered and Mary gulped as she watched how Slughorn started to study her potion. Would he notice? Had she already done too much damage too her Amortentia before Sirius fixed it? Was the mistake she made earlier still detectable?

"Oho!" Slughorn suddenly boomed delightedly. "I thought I'd never see the day, but Miss Woods, this potion is absolutely extraordinary. In fact, I dare say it's even better than Mr. Black's draft. Well done, m'girl, well done", he beamed at her, patting her proudly on the shoulder.

As soon as Slughorn walked back to the front to the class to end today's lesson, Sirius leaned over to Mary, who was putting her book and Potions kit back into her bag. "Even better than my potion," he whispered with a grin on his face.

"I only got it right because you helped me," she whispered back. "If you hadn't fixed it, I would have failed miserably. Yet _again_."

Sirius shook his head as he swung his bag over his shoulder. "No Mary, that's not true. All you did was misreading the amount of asfaloth drops you were supposed to add. Just because Slughorn has an unreadable handwriting and you made a tiny reading mistake doesn't mean you can't brew a decent potion."

And without saying another word, he joined James and Remus who were already leaving the classroom. He left Mary standing there on her own, overwhelmed by confusing thoughts about her talent in Potions and once again, Sirius's behaviour and what she was supposed to think of that.

End of Update


	12. The Forbidden Forest

**Chapter Twelve**

After what felt like ages, Mary heard Lily distantly calling: "Earth to Mary! It's time for lunch."

She looked up and smiled at her redheaded friend, who was waiting for her at the door of the classroom. "Sorry Lil, I was doing some daydreaming, I suppose."

"You were probably still thinking about your outstanding Amortentia," Lily said, grinning as the girls walked towards the Great Hall together.

"Eh well, actually-"

"It's like I'm always telling you. Read the instructions carefully before plunging the ingredients into your cauldron. And have a little faith in yourself. Today you did it all by yourself. Really Mare, I don't want to sound like a big sister or anything, but I'm very proud of you."

She was looking so happy that Mary couldn't bring herself to say that it was in fact Sirius who saved her this time instead of her. She smiled back weakly. "Well yeah, this time I just made sure to double-check the instructions on the board before adding the ingredients, you know."

"Reading carefully is all there is to it," Lily nodded.

They had arrived at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall where the others were already having lunch. As soon as Mary had sat down and grabbed some toast to put marmelade on it, Brice stopped talking to Peter and leaned over to her and Lily. "Hey, did you girls plan anything special after lunch?"

"Not particularly, no," Lily said. "I was planning to write that essay on Alihotsies for Herbology, but..."

"That can wait," Brice said dismissively. "I ran into Hagrid when I came back from Ancient Runes. He needs our help."

"Needs help doing what exactly?" Mary asked suspiciously while she poured Lily and herself some fresh orange juice. She had a little too much experience with Hagrid's fondness of extremely dangerous animals.

"Well, Professor Kettleburn wants to catch two unicorns and show them to his third and fourth years, but as you know, unicorns aren't that fond of wizards."

"Oh, alright then," Mary said, feeling relieved that they weren't going to have to assist Hagrid in catching an enormous graphorn or something like that. They and the other seventh year students had a free period of about three hours. James and Sirius decided to practice some of their Quidditch-moves (both of them were on the Gryffindor team, James as a Chaser and Sirius as a Beater), Remus and Peter went to the library and Mary, Lily and Brice walked towards Hagrid's cabin. It was a chilly November day, but the sun was shining and there was hardly any wind. Hagrid was waiting for them in front of his cabin. "Hello again Brice," he grinned. "An' Lily, Mary, good ter see yeh to'. I trust Brice told yeh all 'bout the unicorns."

"Yes, she did. So where can we find that herd, Hagrid?" Lily asked.

"Well, they're movin' constantly, of course. But I happened ter spo' a stallion near the West side of the forest the other day. An' wherever there's a stallion, there'll be mares an' falls. Professor Kettleburn would be very pleased if yeh'll bring back a mare an' its fall. Yeh think yeh can handle tha'?"

"It should be fine, Hagrid. Do you want us to bring them back to you?" Mary asked.

"Nah, that'll only scare them. Jus' tie them ter tha' tree in the meadow near the castle." He shot them a warning look. "Not the Whompin' Willow of course."

Brice laughed. "Don't worry, we wouldn't do something stupid like that."

"Alrigh' then," Hagrid grinned back as he handed Brice a magical self-refilling bag of carrots and two halters, a small and a bigger one. "Promise me ter watch yer backs in the Forest. Bu' of course yeh know tha' after spendin' six years a' Hogwarts."

"Sure, Hagrid," Lily smiled and the three of them started to walk towards the Forbidden Forest. At first there was more than enough sunlight shining enough through the trees for them to see where they were going, but the further they went into the Forest, the darker it was becoming around them. Mary reached for her wand and Lily and Brice followed her example. "_Lumos_," they said as one and the tips form their wands illuminated.

"Looks like we're straying off too much to the North," Brice observed after a moment.

"We should turn back, then," Lily decided.

The three of them turned left and continued to walk as they formed a line. Mary took the lead, since she was by far the best tracker and would spot hoof prints a bit sooner than the others. Second was Lily and Brice closed the line. For a while they walked on in silence, until Brice suddenly whispered: "So Mary, what's the deal?"

"Sorry?" Mary asked as she lifted her wand high above her head to stare into the distance to see where the path they were taking was leading them to.

"What's the deal between you and Sirius?"

Mary, who had prepared herself for a question like that, answered quickly: "Nothing."

Brice made a scornful sound. "Oh come on, the sparks between you two are flying through the roof."

"No, they're not. There aren't sparks flying at all."

Brice had stopped whispering and was now talking in a normal voice. "Oh Mary, how long are you going to keep this up? Do you think we are blind? You can't stop looking at him. Admit it!"

Mary got so annoyed with Brice that she stopped walking so suddenly that Lily walked right in on her. Still holding her wand up high, she wheeled around so that she had a clear view on Brice's smirking face. "Talked to Remus lately, Brice?" Mary asked loudly.

Brice's smirk faded almost immediately and she turned crimson instead, looking a bit shocked. Now it was Mary's turn to smirk. "Yeah, that's right, I've noticed. Talk about calling the kettle black. Why don't _you_ just focus on Remus and let _me_-"

"Shhhhh!" Lily suddenly hissed in alarm as she elbowed Mary. She pointed to a gap in the tight forest that they had reached. Large rays of light were falling through the trees. "_Nox_," the three girls said almost simultaneously and the lights on their wand tips extinguished.

As silently as they could, they walked through the gap and arrived in a beautiful pasture with flowing green grass, beautiful large trees with auburn, orange and yellow leaves and, not unimportantly, the reason why they had come here: a herd of unicorns. They spotted two stallions, about ten mares and three golden falls, all grazing peacefully near the other end of the meadow. "So what are we going to do now?" Lily wondered aloud.

"We should try to get close without scaring them," Mary said.

"I think we should give them as much carrots as they want," Brice suggested, shaking the bag of carrots.

They tried to walk carefully to the unicorns, but the ground was damp and their heels kept sinking into the grass. The unicorns had already noticed and were watching them closely, but did not run away. The two stallions were particularly interested, taking a few steps closer to the girls.

"Just our luck. They're the ones we don't need and yet they seem to like us," Lily said nervously.

"I don't think they're liking us, Lil. It's just their natural instict. They're merely trying to decide whether we're dangerous creatures or not and if they should attack us," Mary replied, watching the stallions closely.

"Thanks a lot, that's really making me feel better."

But apparently the stallions did not think they were that dangerous, because they didn't attack them. Yet they continued to approach the girls.

"Okay, this isn't going to work. We need a diversion. What if you two stay here and "seduce" the stallions, then I will sneak up on a mare and her fall behind them," Brice said.

"Well, it's worth a shot, I guess," Lily said as she grabbed a handful of carrots out from Brice's bag.

The stallions had finally reached them. Mary and Lily each started to stroke one unicorn. They whispered sweet words in their ears and fed them some carrots. Over her stallion's head, Mary noticed that Brice was carefully approaching a beautiful mare and her golden fall.

"Is it true?" Lily suddenly asked while she was feeding another carrot to her stallion.

"What, that the stallions didn't trust us at first? Oh, you mean Brice and Remus! Yes, I'm quite sure of that."

"No, not that. Although it does explain a lot," Lily said thoughtfully. "But no, I was talking about you and Sirius."

Mary sighed. She was hopeless at hiding and lying about her feelings and Brice and Lily knew that. She tickled her unicorn behind his ears to buy herself some time, and apparently the stallion liked that a lot, because he gave her a soft push with his head. She sighed again and closed her eyes for a moment. "To tell you the truth Lil, I don't know. Part of me thinks he's the most annoying prat at Hogwarts and there's a part of me that thinks he's not. Part of me doesn't want to become number 316 on his list of conquests and there's a part of me that is dying to become that number 316." She looked sideways at Lily. "I'm just confused."

To her astonishment, Lily started to smile. "I cannot say how glad I am to hear you say that. I'm going through exactly the same thing with James. Part of me wants to kiss him desperately and another - equally as large - part of me wants to lock up the obnoxious git in a dungeon for eternity."

Mary laughed and let the stallion sniffle her hand. "We are something, aren't we? We go on hating those guys for years and at the end of everything we can't help but falling for them after all."

Lily groaned. "Now hang on a second: I haven't fallen for him yet. Imagine how thick his head would get when he finds out I'm fancying him." She pulled a face.

"Actually, I think you would make him the happiest man on the planet. James adores you Lily, you know that. He would treat you like a princess."

Lily glanced at her. "So would Sirius. I know that he has been with a lot of girls, but I'm telling you: it's different with you. Maybe it's because he's finally growing up or something, but I think he's actually in love with you."

"Hmmm..." Mary answered distractedly. Lily's words were confusing her even more.

"Anyway, I think it's for the best that we should keep this to ourselves, and Brice of course. What good would it do if they find out sooner than we've made up our minds?"

"My point exactly."

They continued to stroke their stallions in silence, each of them drowned in their own thoughts, until a grinning Brice appeared next to them, pulling along a stunningly white mare and her fall.

"Ready we go?" she said.

Lily and Mary nodded and started to guide their stallions to a peaceful spot behind one of the large trees. They didn't seem to notice that one of their mares and falls was missing from their herd yet. Meanwhile, Brice - guiding the mare and her fall – had already reached the edge of the Forest. After they said goodbye to the unicorns, Lily and Mary sprinted back to the Forest as fast as they could. Right when they were about to reach Brice, they could hear the thundering hooves of the furious unicorns. It seemed that the stallions wouldn't remain so kind to them now, so they took the mare and the fall back to Hogwarts as quickly as possible. Luckily, they neither heard nor saw the stallions until they were well out the western side of the Forest.

End of Update


	13. When Sparks Fly

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Don't worry Padfoot, that final tactic was a really difficult move," James told a scowling Sirius as he put his broomstick against the wall of the dressing room and sat down on one of the benches.

Over the last hour the two of them been practising some new Quidditch maneuvres that would come in handy during their upcoming match against Ravenclaw. James, who was the Captain of the Gryffindor team, introduced some spectacular moves to Sirius and his friend managed to excel in all of them but one: the Dopplebeater Defence.

"If only if I could make my broom turn an _instant_ of a second faster," Sirius muttered as he pulled a hand through his dark hair.

"Just keep practising. You're gonna get there eventually."

Sirius grumbled something unintelligible and chucked his old battered gloves into his locker. "It's not even that good of a move anyway. Just because that Ludo Bagman is famous for it... Anyway, I've had it for today." He pulled off his clothes and walked towards the bathroom.

When the guys finished taking a shower and were busy dressing themselves, James suddenly remembered something. "Say, that perfect Amortentia Mary was brewing in Potions this morning... Did you have anything to do with that?"

Sirius laughed, remembering the state of the draft _before_ he had taken a look at it. "Maybe... Then again, maybe not."

James arched an eyebrow and grinned. "I know enough. You did help her." Afyer another moment he looked up from tying his shoelaces, frowning. "But why?"

"She needed it."

"But why in the world would she let _you_ help her?" He started to laugh since he already figured it out as he said it. "Ahhh yes, dear Lily was in the bathroom and Remus and I were still working on our own potions. So basically, you were her last resort."

Sirius shrugged. "Last resort or not, I did help her and made it look like she did it all by herself. Besides, she didn't screw up that much. All she did was misreading Slughorn's instructions on the board."

James grinned. "Still, you got to be her potion-hero today."

Sirius, who was fixing his hair in front of a mirror, shot James a dirty look over his shoulder. James stood up from the bench and swung his bag over his shoulder. "You about done there? It's time to go to Defense."

"Yeah, alright." Sirius shot one last look at his stunning reflection and then walked out of the dressing room, closely followed by James.

When the two of them stepped outside, they noticed that the crisp, clear weather from only an hour before had disappeared. Instead, it was drizzling. This wasn't very convenient weather, because Professor Zabini had just set up a practice course for today's class. And if what they heard about their enthusiastic Defence-teacher was right, a bit of drizzling wouldn't stop him from keeping this an outdoor lesson. James and Sirius were now walking past Hagrid's cabin. He was weeding his pumpkin field and waved at them.

"But I'm still trying to work this out," James said as he waved back at Hagrid. "There is definitely something going on between you and Mary. Since when is 'Sirius the Great' not asking out girls who are fancying him?"

Sirius gave his friend a friendly, but hard push, so that James slipped over the muddy ground and landed right on his butt. "With any other girl I would have, you prat. But I just don't know where I'm at with Mary. She drives me insane to tell you the truth."

James nodded as he crawled back up and tried to wipe the mud off his trousers. "She does act a bit strange around you, doesn't she?"

Sirius looked at James who was anxiously trying to clean his trousers before he shook his head and pulled out his wand, pointed it directly at the muddy trousers and thought _"Scourgify"_. The mud disappeared at once.

"Thanks mate."

"Welcome. Anyway, I do realize that she has feelings for me, but somehow I know she's not quite ready to go on a date. I have the nasty foreboding that she'll threaten to jinx me if I dare to ask her out."

"So what are you going to do?"

Sirius shrugged. "Wait for the opportune moment, I reckon. Although I fear that with her, I won't be quite sure to know when that will be."

"Looks like our master's famous tactics are wearing off a bit eh?" James teased.

"Oh, shut it, Prongs. Besides, look who's talking. Aren't you patrolling the corridors with Lily almost every night now without having the guts to ask her out? In a _normal_ way, I mean," Sirius added quickly.

"Yes, but that's me. I'm pathetic with girls I like. You _know_ them. You're a guiding light to the rest of us fools. The fact that you're losing your touch is truly alarming."

Sirius roared with laughter. "A guiding light to the rest of you? That's hilarious. Be sure to put that on my tombstone, alright?"

"Put what on your tombstone, Sirius?" Lily asked, looking interested.

They had arrived at the spot where this lesson of Defense against the Dark Arts would take place. Professor Zabini had conjured a large waterproof tent that would be protecting them from the rain. A large opening made it possible to watch over some kind of labyrinth that Professor Zabini had set out for them.

"Oh, nothing you would care about," James replied quickly before Sirius could say anything.

"I bet it must be a list of all your conquests," Alison said thoughtfully. She had momentarily abandoned her Slytherin friends and was offering Cauldron Cakes to Mary and Remus. Sirius continued to laugh, but still didn't say anything. Alison sniggered and said: "I wonder how high that tombstone would be, then. All the names of your conquests... Merlin, I think the sky would be the limit. How far along are you now?"

"What did you say his current score was again, Mare? 316?," Lily said, elbowing her friend with twinkling eyes.

Mary choked on her Cauldron Cake and shot Lily an annoyed look. She was about to say that the number she named was only a matter of speaking, when–

"-316? Now _that_ would be a little embarrassing. I'm closing in on 400, actually," Sirius said, patting himself proudly on the chest.

"It's a shame my name will never get on that tombstone, though," Alison said, pouting a little.

"I don't see why not," Remus noted. "Both of you are single at the moment..."

Alison shook her head. "No, I could never go out with Sirius. He's too handsome for me. I'll be admiring him constantly and I want guys to look up at _me_." She suddenly wrapped an arm around little Peter. "Now you I could date. Seriously, the two of us should hang out some time."

They all laughed except Peter, who had stiffened like a board when Alison hugged him and wasn't sure what to say or do. At least that's how it looked to the others, because Peter did open his mouth to speak, but nothing was coming out.

"Come on Alison, leave the poor guy alone," Brice said, stepping up next to Peter.

Alison laughed and let go of Peter. "Fine, it was not my place. Still, I do think he's cute." She walked back to her Slytherin classmates.

"Peter, the next time something like this happens, please don't forget to play along," James said, laughing as he patted Peter on the shoulder.

"Says the expert," Brice joked.

Sirius burst out laughing again and James looked like he had just eaten a vomit-flavoured Bertie Botts Every Flavour Bean. Luckily that was the Professor Zabini got their attention as he started their lesson with another lengthy speech on one of his big adventures. "Today we'll be practising one of an Auror's most crucial tactics: tracking and being tracked. Why, while _I_ was an Auror at the Brazillian Ministry of Magic, that turned out to be rather difficult with all those rain forests and everything. I remember one time when I was after this particular dangerous Dark wizard, I only managed to corner him because of..."

Sirius had stopped listening long before that. He knew the Defense-lessons were very important if he wanted to get into the Auror Program, but Merlin, it could be so boring to listen to Zabini's tales. It was almost like being back in History of Magic-class. He glanced sideways and noticed that he wasn't the only one who wasn't paying attention to the lesson. Mary was staring distractedly over the labyrinth. Sirius followed her gaze and saw she was gazing at two unicorns who were tied up to a tree in a meadow near the castle.

Her long hair was blowing around her face because of the upcoming wind. Sirius noticed there was a tiny yellow leaf sticking in her hair and without really thinking, he reached for it. His fingers briefly touched her neck as he reached for the leaf. Mary startled, but her response was swift nevertheless. She snapped his hand away, whirled around and hissed: "What do you think you're doing?"

Sirius, slightly taken aback by her snappy response, whispered: "Nothing, but it's just.. You've got a leaf in your hair."

"Oh." She reached for it with her hand.

"No, a little more to the right. Wait, just let me," Sirius said softly and he slowly brought his hand up to her face.

Mary seemed to hesitate at first, but let him reach for it in the end. Sirius carefully tried to pull the leaf out of her hair, but accidentally touched the soft skin of her neck as he did so. She didn't startle this time, but let him carry on so that he managed to get the tangled leaf out eventually.

He showed her the leaf to make her understand that he hadn't been lying just so that he could touch her hair, but she hardly paid attention to it. Instead, she was looking at him with an unreadable expression on her face. For a moment he tried to decipher what was going on in her head, but within seconds he got lost in those beautiful blue eyes and completely forgot where he was.

He got jerked back to reality by Peter who was elbowing him hard in the ribs. He looked round at him, a little annoyed that his friend had interrupted the first romantic moment between him and Mary. But soon enough it became more than obvious why Peter had done so. Professor Zabini's voice, whom Sirius momentarily completely forgot ever existed, suddenly sounded loud and clear.

"And who to be tracked? Let's see... Ah yes! Miss Woods, if you please!"

End of Update


	14. The Maze

**Chapter Fourteen**

"What?!"

Did she say that aloud? Considering the number of frowning faces - including Professor Zabini's – that were staring at her, she probably did. But it was all going so fast. One minute ago she was gazing into the most incredible grey eyes she'd ever seen (from up close they were even more enchanting), and now the entire class was watching her at her with curious looks on their faces.

"Well," Professor Zabini said arching an eyebrow at her. "What are you waiting for?"

"Eh..." Mary said, trying to buy some time as she glanced back over her shoulder. Sirius merely shrugged, looking as oblivious as she did. She turned back to Professor Zabini and –with a somewhat guilty expression on her face - said: "Doing what exactly, sir?"

His brow furrowed even more and he crossed his arms. "Well Miss Woods, if you weren't so busy cuddling with Mr. Black there, you would have known what you could be facing in the labyrinth. Unfortunately, now you will have to go in blind."

Mary swallowed with difficulty. Certainly he wasn't suggesting...

"Off you go."

Mary's legs still weren't willing to move, but then she noticed Sirius was standing close behind her. "Go on, you'll be fine," he whispered into her ear as he gently pushed her forward.

Her legs finally kicked into gear and a hesitant Mary started to walk. Brice and Lily nodded encouragingly when she passed them, but she did not smile back. When she was about to enter the labyrinth, Professor Zabini called something after her: "Good luck then, Miss Woods. Remember that all spells you cast must be non-verbal. From up here we'll be able to follow your every move. Oh, and may I suggest that you keep your wand at the ready?"

Mary quickly pulled out her wand and without looking back, she entered the labyrinth. It wasn't that large. The hedges were about eight feet tall and didn't make her feel very claustrophobic. But the drizzling rain was annoying: it made her robes feel like lead and her hair got stuck to her face. She shook her hair back and wiped her wet face with the sleeve of her robes. She then turned left at the first turn, then right and left again. Nothing peculiar happened in the first paths of the labyrinth.

She desperately tried to remember what Zabini had said at the start of the lesson when she was still paying attention to him. Something about being tracked and tracking... But being tracked by what? It seemed unlikely that animals could consciously track and attack her, so she assumed that her "enemies" would have to be humans. Mary turned right at the end of the path and thought she spotted the end of a billowing robe at the corner of the next lane. She sprinted to the end and shot a careful look around it. There was nothing there. Was she just imagining things? Perhaps the labyrinth was making her feel claustrophobic after all.

She leaned back against the hedge for a moment and closed her eyes. Almost at once Sirius's mesmerizing eyes appeared. Incredible grey and they had these amazing blue and golden streaks in them. She could get seriously lost in those eyes, and everything attached to them actually. It was hard to admit, but if he would have kissed her right there in front of everyone, she would not have objected in any way.

Mary got jerked back to the present by the loud snap of a twig. Her eyes shot open at once. She looked around and listened intently for a moment, before she realized it was her who had stepped on the twig. She couldn't help but snigger because of her own stupidity and tried to keep her focus on where it should be: become the tracker, instead of being tracked. She crouched down and examined the footsteps in front of her. Some were her own, of course, but there were others... A pair of boots and sneakers, she concluded. She started to follow the footsteps closely.

For another few minutes, nothing interesting happened. Right when Mary was starting to think there was no one else in the labyrinth and that she was being pranked by Zabini, she suddenly felt a prickling sensation down her neck. She knew just then that there was something - someone - near her...

Mary clutched her wand and when she thought the time was right, she wheeled around quickly and thought _"Petrificus Totalus!"_. She knew she stroke gold when she heard a body drop to the ground, but she wasn't feeling victorious yet. She remembered there had been two pairs of footprints and was looking closely for a sign of this other person. She didn't have to wait long. She heard a rustling sound and ducked out of pure instinct. She knew she did the right thing, because a fraction of a second later a red jet of light hit the hedge right where her head had been only seconds ago and burned a large hole in it. She rolled over the ground, pointed her wand in the direction where the spell had come from and thought _"Impedimenta!"_. Apparently she had once again hit the target at her first attempt, because she could hear another loud thud which indicated that a limp body was hitting the muddy earth.

The next thing she heard were loud cheers from her classmates and Professor Zabini's voice – obviously using Sonorus - booming over the labyrinth. "Well done, Miss Woods. You beat both of your enemies on pure instinct. Twenty points to Gryffindor!"

"Thank you, sir!" Mary called back, feeling relieved it was over. She was dying to find out who had been trying to attack her, so she quickly glanced around the corner of the hedge. She laughed when she established it was Remus. She quickly undid the spell and he sat up, nursing the back of his head. "You alright, Remus?" she asked as she pulled him back up. 

"Yeah, fine. I just fell hard on my head when you stunned me. Geez, are you fast with a wand."

"Thanks," Mary grinned proudly.

Together they walked to Mary's other opponent. Mary gasped when she saw that it was no other than Severus Snape. Remus pointed his wand at the rigid body and muttered _"Finite"_. 

Severus stood up as quickly as possible and wiped his dark and greasy hair from his face, but didn't say a word. He looked rather angry, though. Mary shot a careful glance at Remus before saying carefully: "Are you alright, Severus? I hope I didn't hurt you too badly when my spell hit you."

Severus just shot her a nasty look. "I'm not hurt. And you just got lucky. There is no way a _Mudblood_ like you could ever beat me in a normal duel."

Mary thought it was really hurtful to get such a cruel word thrown at her for no reason and she was too gobsmacked to say anything at all for a moment. Remus on the other hand hadn't lost his tongue. "Take it easy, Severus. You just lost a game. Who do you think you are calling her names like that!" Remus called with a note of anger in his otherwise sogentle voice.

"Shut up, Lupin!" Severus snarled. "From staring at the moon, I reckon these are the final days of the month you're able to play outside."

Remus looked simply murderous now and was pointing his wand straight at Severus. With a tremendous effort, he put it back in his robes and walked off, pulling Mary along with him by the arm and leaving Severus behind. When they were almost back at the entrance of the labyrinth, Mary, who had finally got her voice back, said: "What the heck was that about?"

Remus didn't answer at first. He just continued to walk fast with Mary hurrying along with him. When the others came in view, he said shortly: "He's just bitter he lost from you, Mary. I have no idea what his last comment was about."

Mary didn't believe a word from what he was saying, but before she could mention anything about it the other classmates were all over them.

"You were amazing."  
"You rocked!"  
"Extraordinary spell-casting."  
"You floored Snivellus!"

Mary looked around at the person who had said this. It was James, grinning like Christmas had come early. "You made my day, Mary! Getting him at his very first attempt to curse you – absolutely brilliant," he said proudly before he kissed her happily on the cheek, patted her on the back and – still sniggering - started walking towards the castle with Remus and Peter.

Then she could suddenly feel a gentle arm slipping around her waist. "Juse promise me one thing," came Sirius's voice in her ear, which instantly turned her legs into two strings of cooked spaghetti. "Remind me to never sneak up on you in the dark. Girl, you can duel!" He let go and winked at her before he catched up with the other guys.

Mary just stood there for a moment as she stared ahead, drowned in all kinds of confusing thoughts about Sirius and Remus's odd response to Severus's remark, when she got interrupted by her friends.

"Good job Mare, you showed them. I know you would. You're probably the best tracker in our year," Lily said, smiling before she walked to the castle with Alison. Mary looked sideways at Brice who was standing next to her. She didn't say anything, but the smile on her face could not have been bigger. She just wouldn't stop grinning, so Mary had no choice but to ask: "What?"

Brice never stopped grinning when she called: "No sparks my arse!"

Mary stared at her, stunned at first, but then she also started to smil. Her grin slowly turned into a real laugh. Brice nodded and said: "Come on, let's get you into some dry clothes." She hooked her arm through Mary's and - still laughing - they set off to the castle together.

End of Update


	15. Jonathans Revenge

**Chapter Fifteen**

That night Mary had a lot of trouble with falling asleep. On one hand, she was glad that her feelings for a certain classmate was out in the open. Lily and Brice knew how she felt about Sirius (and she knew about their feelings for James and Remus), and she assumed that Sirius must have figured it out by now as well.

She knew it was all for the best, but on the other hand... she was also scared out her wits. How would she react when Sirius would ask her out? She still hadn't figured out if she really wanted to become his next conquest, but didn't Lily say that it was different with her? That Sirius actually seemed to really care for her?

She rolled onto her other side. What she should come up with now was a "plan de campagne"; she needed to know exactly how to respond when he did ask her out. She needed to stay in control, that's for sure, but God those eyes... She suddenly understood what all his ex-girlfriends meant when they were raving about his grey eyes. They were simply mesmerizing and once she stared into them, she lost all touch with reality.

Mary sat up straight. That was it, then: avoid his eyes and just act cool as ever. Now that she had figured that out for herself, she dropped back to her pillow and fell asleep almost immediately, unconsciously dreaming about those astonishing grey, blue and golden streaked eyes...

"Oof!"

The following morning, Mary's wake-up call was a lot less dreamy, as she woke up because Brice was chucking a pillow at her face. She groaned sleepily and muttered: "Wa's go'ng on?"

"We overslept, that's what is going on! The battery in Lily's alarm clock has run out and you didn't set yours. So much for the wonders of Muggle technology. Anyway, we already missed breakfast and have to hurry to make it to our first class of the day on time."

"Crap!" Mary called. She jumped out of bed, showered, got dressed, braided her hair (all of that in less than eight minutes) and quickly descended the dormitory stairs to the common room where Lily and Brice were already waiting for her.

The three girls hurried down the corridors of the school as fast as they could. Brice turned left to the Arithmancy classroom and Lily and Mary continued to run to the greenhouses. Unfortunately Mary suddenly realized she had forgotten something and she stopped running abruptly.

"What are you doing? We're going to be late!" Lily said as she turned around, panting heavily.

"I forgot my book. You go ahead and tell Sprout I'm gonna be there in a minute!"

Lily nodded and ran off. Mary turned around and sprinted back to the common room at top speed. She was completely out of breath when she was frantically searching for her Herbology book in her trunk. When she finally spotted the heavy book, she snatched it and ran down the stairs, stuffing her book in her bag along the way.

She bumped into a couple of third-years on her way out of the portrait, but didn't apologize or look back. Instead she continued to run to the greenhouses and decided to take a shortcut through what appeared to be a completely deserted courtyard.

At the end she could already see the beginning of the greenhouses. "Almost there," she panted and at that very moment, two strong arms pulled her into a distant corner. It was Jonathan and - contrary to the last time she saw him - he wasn't looking very cheerful now. He locked her arms in a firm and painful grip and threw her hard against the stone wall of the courtyard.

Mary would have yelled from the pain when her side hit the wall if she wasn't too out of breath to make a sound. Her dazed mind had trouble registering what Jonathan was doing and why, but was unable to do anything for a moment, completely paralyzed by shock. She couldn't even have used her wand if she wanted to, because it was out of her reach. She had put it in her bag which was lying on the floor at least ten feet ahead of them.

Jonathan was standing right before her, looking simply murderous. "You think I had forgotten about last time?" he growled through gritted teeth. "Think you can embarrass me in front of all my mates without consequences?"

"Just leave me alone, please!" Mary cried.

Jonathan didn't seem to be willing to let her go anytime soon. Instead he merely tightened his grip on Mary's arms even more. "I really _cared_ and this is how you repay me? I'll teach you to humiliate me!"

And without another word he hit her hard against her right cheek. Mary snapped her eyes shut in shocka and cringed. He quickly raised his hand again and Mary braced herself for the next punch, but it never came. Someone was pulling Jonathan away from her. Mary opened her eyes for a moment and watched how a furious Sirius was dragging Jonathan away from her.

Mary saw how he punched Jonathan in the face, but then closed her eyes and slid down slowly against the wall. Then she could hear Sirius yell: "_Ever_ dare to come near her again and I kill you!", followed by a pair of footsteps hurrying off as soon as possible.

She remained seated against the courtyard wall and hugged her knees, feeling completely dazed, not even sure if this really happened or that it was all a bad dream. The next thing she knew was that Sirius was kneeling down and putting a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She looked at him and tried to say "I'm fine" but nothing came out of her mouth, so she just gave him a tiny nod. Sirius offered her a hand, which she accepted and he pulled her back up. She groaned as she felt a sharp pain in her ribcage.

"Shhhh it's okay, he's gone now," Sirius said softly as he put his arms around her and kissed her on the forehead.

"I… I'm... I am okay," Mary finally said in a shaky voice while she allowed herself to rest her head on Sirius's shoulder for a moment. She then carefully touched her cheekbone, which was glowing and throbbing badly.

"Hang on," Sirius said, noticing what she was doing. He pulled his wand out and waved it around twice as he muttered _"Glacius tesella"._ A few tiny ice cubes appeared in his hand and he carfeully held them against her cheek.

Sirius's cold hand against her throbbing cheek felt really good and Mary calmed down slightly. She looked up at him. "What were you doing here anyway?"

"Forgot my book. You?"

"Same."

Sirius smiled sadly and shook his head. Now she knew that she had only just been attacked by the raving lunatic formerly known as Jonathan McLaggen, but the way Sirius was holding the ice to her face wasn't exactly just soothing the pain.

From what she could tell, a band of butterflies was throwing a big brithday party in her belly and she felt that her cheek wasn't exactly just reddening from the pain and ice. She desperately tried to avoid Sirius's eyes and kept her gaze focused at the floor instead.

Sirius seemed to notice something was going on, because he carefully removed his icy hand from her face. "That should be enough until Madam Pomfrey has taken a look at it. Come on." He softly pulled her along by the hand, but she didn't move an inch.

"Madam Pomfrey?"

"Yes, we're going to the hospital wing."

"No, we're not. We have to go to Herbology."

Sirius frowned at her. "Mary, you just got attacked by Jonathan. We're going to Madam Pomfrey and after that, we'll pay a visit to McGonagall and perhaps even Dumbledore."

Telling McGonagall that she had just been punched in the face by her ex-boyfriend? The thought alone made her cringe. The Head of Gryffindor House wasn't the most warm and understanding Professor you would turn to and inform her about such an embarrassing experience like this one. She resolutely shook her head. "No."

"What? Mary, you cannot be serious. You need to report this."

"Maybe later, but not now. Right now I have a Herbology lesson to attend."

Mary picked up her bag from the grund and walked off in the direction of the greenhouses. At first Sirius seemed to be too shocked for a moment to do anything at all, but he caught up with her in the end. He continued to stare at her with an unreadable expression in his eyes.

When Mary realized what he was doing, she got really nervous all of the sudden and rolled her eyes. "What?"

"I... I just don't get you."

"What are you talking about?"

He sighed. "For the first time in my life I have no idea how to deal with... With this."

Mary frowned at him. "Now _I_ am having trouble getting you."

He grabbed her hand, forcing her to stop walking and face him. "Are you still denying that there is something going on between us?"

Mary hadn't quite expected him to say something about this so soon. She slowly looked up at him (the belly butterflies were now racing against each other), when–

"-Miss Woods, could I talk to you for a moment?"

End of Update


	16. Zabini's Proposal

**Chapter Sixteen**

It was Professor Zabini, who was standing on the path that was leading to their greenhouse, holding a large pile of heavy books in his arms.

Mary glanced at Sirius, who looked seriously annoyed that they had been interrupted yet _again_. "Good morning sir," he said sarcastically, grinding his teeth.

"Hello, Mr. Black," Zabini said cheerfully, not picking up on Sirius's annoyance at all. "I hope I wasn't interrupting things between you two (Sirius rolled his eyes), but I was hoping if I could steal Miss W... Merlin's Beard, girl! What happened to your face?"

Mary's hand immediately shot up to her cheek. She had no idea how bad her face looked, but if Zabini could spot it from that distance, it must be looking about as painful as it felt. The Professor had now reached them and shot her a concerned look.

"Well, since you're asking," Sirius started loudly.

"-I bumped my head!" Mary cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

"Really now?" Zabini was leaning in closely to examine her cheek. "That must have been quite an accomplishment. How did you manage to do that?"

"I... I..." Mary stuttered, desperately trying to come up with the right words. "I wasn't paying attention and ran straight in on... eh... on one of the pillars on the courtyard," she finished dully, hardly daring to look at Sirius.

He made a derisive sound and Zabini arched his eyebrows, clearly not believing a word from what she was saying. Which made totally sense, because it was an utterly lame excuse. She wouldn't believe it if someone had told her that either. But thankfully – after another tense moment of silence - Zabini decided to leave it alone. "Very well, then," he said. "In that case I'm wondering if you would accompany me to my office."

"I'm terribly sorry sir, but I have a Herbology class to go to," Mary replied.

"I'm afraid this cannot wait." He looked at Sirius. "Mr. Black, would you be so kind to tell Professor Sprout that Miss Woods was unable to attend this lesson because she was summoned to have an unexpected meeting with me?"

"Yes, sir," Sirius muttered.

"Then I suggest you should go to Herbology right now. You're already ten minutes late," Zabini said as he checked his watch.

Sirius nodded, shot Mary a "this conversation isn't over yet"-look and walked off to the greenhouses.

"Love troubles?" Zabini asked as he frowned at Sirius's back, attempting to observe the situation.

"Eh..." Mary said, noticing that her cheeks were reddening fast.

"Never mind, I don't think I even want to know," the Professor replied teasingly, his dark eyes twinkling with joy.

"Why did you wanted to see me, sir?"

"Not here. Let's go to my room."

Mary followed Zabini to his office and, because the Professor was unable to do so because of all the books in his arms, opened the door for him.

"Please, sit down, sit down," Zabini said kindly after he had put the books down on his desk, gesturing to the two arm chairs opposite the desk. Mary sat down in the chair facing the Professor, who also sat down when he thought of something. "Oh yes, before I forget: would you like some tea?"

"Oh... Sure."

"I've got all the tastes you can think of. Earl grey, lemon, green tea... Cinnamon?" he asked, waving around all kinds of different-looking teabags.

Mary smiled. "Earl grey is fine, sir."

While Zabini was making tea, Mary looked around the office. She hadn't been here since their third year, when Hector Hobovicus was the Defense-teacher. He was famous for his fear of spiders, but used to keep them in tanks to study them. Thought this way he could overcome his fear. Sadly at the end of the year he got lost in the Forbidden Forest and was never seen again. Rumor had it that he had been eaten by a giant tribe of acromantula's, but Mary had never really believed that story.

"So," Zabini said as he put down her cup of tea. "You're probably wondering why I wanted to see you."

Mary nodded, trying to warm up her cold hands on the steaming cup.

"I wanted to discuss that excellent demonstration you gave in the labyrinth. I've known from the very first lesson that you are a gifted witch when it comes to Defense at the Dark Arts, but the way you handled the situation yesterday, going into the labyrinth blind and beat two very strong opponents... That was extraordinary."

Mary felt herself going red again. "Thank you sir, but it wasn't that great."

"I would think that is up to me to decide, wouldn't you agree? Now please tell me, how did you know Severus was right behind you at one point?"

"I tracked his footsteps, sir."

Zabini nodded. "Naturally. And when you ducked and countered Remus's jinx, you reacted instinctively?"

"Yes."

"Hmm, naturally." He sipped his tea thoughtfully before saying: "Miss Woods, have you ever considered to become an Auror?"

Mary choked on her tea.

"Apparently not," Zabini said, smiling at her.

"No, I guess not," Mary said, coughing. "I mean, I know I'm good at Defense, but my ambition is to become a Healer."

"Healing is a wonderful profession, fair enough. But I think you shouldn't ignore the fact that you possess the rare package of gifts that sets a great Auror aside: intelligence, courage and swift responses based on pure instinct. Professor Clearwater may be able to unravel the future, but I use my "inner eye" to spot those few who have what it takes. And with the difficult times of open warfare we are about to face, the Ministry will need every talented Auror they can get. The thing is... There aren't that many people who have the power to become an Auror. So far I have spotted only three candidates in your year: James Potter, Sirius Black and you."

He shot her an expecting look.

"James and Sirius will be pleased to hear that, sir," Mary answered eventually.

"That is not an answer to my question."

"Well, I respect your opinion sir, I really do. And I'm very flattered that you think I could be a good Auror, but I really want to become a Healer. I've wanted this all my life."

"Have you ever though of becoming an Auror with a specialism in Healing?"

"I didn't know that was a possibility… I promise I will consider it."

"Very well, then. Since literally forcing you into the Auror Program – unfortunately - is not allowed, there isn't much else I can do," he said, a grin creeping up on his dark face. "Thanks for stopping by and I suggest watching where you're going more carefully from now on." He winked at her. "Nasty things those pillars."

"Ehh... yes I will, sir. Goodbye," a (yet again) reddening Mary stammered as she put her empty cup down on the desk. She quickly walked out of the office and checked the time; she noticed that Herbology wouldn't be over for another twenty minutes. Feeling reluctant to attend that class after all, she wondered what she should do next. Sirius's remark about reporting Jonathan to McGonagall resounded in her head. She knew he was right, but she just couldn't get herself to walk to McGonagall's office.

What about Dumbledore? But would a simple attack like Jonathan's be important enough to bother him? She had always liked Dumbledore, he was kind and peaceful and seemed to have all the answers in the world. But honestly, what could he possibly do about this? Expel Jonathan? Surely that would be a little exaggerated. He did not try to kill her after all. But then a horrible thought came to her: what if Sirius hadn't been around in that courtyard? Would Jonathan have beaten her up even more? It certainly didn't look like he was about to stop hitting her anytime soon...

She remained standing outside Zabini's office for another while, feeling indecisive about several things at the same time. Right when she was considering to start writing that Potions essay on the use of fluxweed, her throbbing right cheek seemed to make the decision for her. "Madam Pomfrey it is," Mary muttered to herself and she walked off in the direction of the Hospital Wing.

End of Update


	17. A Friendly Intervention

**Chapter ****Seventeen**

"He did WHAT?" Lily said loudly, momentarily abandoning the screechsnap she was supposed to milk.

"Shhh!" Sirius hissed, ushering Lily to lower her voice. He had been enduring several curious looks from her, James and Remus ever since he arrived at the lesson about twenty minutes ago. He quickly informed the others about what Jonathan had done to Mary as soon as Sprouts lecture on how to carefully milk a screechsnap ended and the practical part of the lesson begun.

James looked angry, a tired looking Remus (the full moon was drawing closer) merely confused. "But I don't understand," he said. "You say Jonathan attacked Mary in the courtyard, but that place is always swarming with people right before the lessons. How could he do that to her when there were so many people around?"

"She had forgotten her book," Lily said quietly, pulling a hand through her hair. "We were already running late and hurrying to Herbology together when she had to go back to get it."

"I'd also forgotten my book," Sirius said. "The courtyard was completely deserted about the time I was crossing it. It was more luck than anything else that I was in the right place at the right time. I don't want to think about what would have happened if..." He didn't finish that last sentence and focused on milking his screechsnap for a moment instead.

"What happened exactly, Padfoot?" James asked, shooting him a look.

Sirius sighed. "Jonathan had forced her into that tight little corner on the left side of the courtyard and I saw him hit her. I'm not entirely sure what happened next, as it went a bit dark for my eyes. I do remember I pulled the guy away from her and hit him a black eye. I would have liked to punch him even more, but – unfortunately - the coward decided to take a run for it."

A tense silence followed that got abruptly broken by a high shrieking noise followed by a loud splatter; Lily had been squeezing her screechsnap so tighyly that it burst and spilled its fluid all over their table.

"Careful there, miss Evans!" Professor Sprout said in a reproachful manner. "I trust you know how to clean up this mess yourself."

"Sorry, Professor," Lily muttered before picking up her wand and waving it around. The screechsnap and all the fluid disappeared at once. She placed her wand back on the table and shook her head in a dismayed manner. "I knew something like this would happen. Mary never took Jonathan's temper very seriously, but I'm telling you: that guy is completely nuts, _and_ now dangerous as well."

"Well, I'm sure Sirius's fists knocked some sense into that obnoxious prick," James said as he pushed his screechsnap over to Lily to share some of his plant's milk. As she reached for it, her hand accidentally touched James's hand and both of them pulled back immediately. Lily was blushing intensely when she reached for the screechsnap again and muttered "Thanks" to James, who mumbled "Welcome" back in return while his hand shot straight towards the back of his head, ruffling his messy hair nervously.

Sirius witnessed this amusing spectacle for a while before saying (without a note of sarcasm): "I said I'd kill him if he ever comes near her again."

"That's my lad," a quickly recovered James (with newly messed up hair) said prudly, patting Sirius on the shoulder. "And Jonathan would do well to believe you."

"What did McGonagall say?" Remus asked.

Sirius frowned. "Yeah, that's something else. Mary didn't want to report Jonathan to McGonagall. In fact, she didn't even want to go to Madam Pomfrey to get her to cure her injuries."

Sirius could hear Lily starting to grind her teeth from his end of the table. Her emerald eyes were glinting dangerously when she muttered: "Letting Jonathan get away with this? Oh, I don't think so..."

"Eh Lil, she seemed pretty determined about it," Sirius said cautiously.

"Give me one minute. I will talk some sense into her," Lily said, looking even more determined.

As soon as Sprout ended their lesson, the four of them hurried back to the castle. Along the way they passed Hagrid and Professor Kettleburn who were instructing a few fourth year-girls how to guide a mother unicorn and her fall back into the Forbidden Forest. "Since when is Hagrid able to approach a herd of unicorns?" Remus wondered aloud.

"Oh, he didn't," Lily replied. "Hagrid asked us to do get the unicorns for him."

"How did you manage to do that?"

"We created a diversion. While Mary and were distracting the stallions, Brice managed to capture one mare and her fall."

"Distract them?" Sirius asked. "With what?"

Lily shrugged. "By stroking them gently and whispering soft words into their ears, of course."

They were now heading up the stairs of the castle. A grinning James, who was walking beside Sirius, turned towards him and said excitedly: "Have you ever wanted to be a unicorn? I wish I was now!"

James was talking in a soft voice, but clearly not quiet enough, because Lily heard every word he said. However, when she turned around she wasn't looking angry, or even offended. On the contrary, she was actually smiling at them. "You guys, unbelievable," she said, laughing as she shook her head and continued to walk to the Entrance Hall.

James looked at Sirius in surprise. "No retort?" he asked, looking slightly confused.

"Apparently not," Sirius replied, grinning. "You're making massive improvement here, Prongs. I think she's actually starting to like you."

The three of them decided to look for Mary together and they walked to the Common Room, but there was no sign of their friend there nor in the girls dormitory. And she wasn't studying in the library either. After discussing that since it was nearly lunch time, she might just be hanging out in the Great Hall, they decided to take a look. And indeed, Mary was sitting at their end of the table, staring at a page in her book and scribbling down something on a piece of parchment.

Lily walked straight towards her. "Mare, I just heard. The nerve of that jerk! Are you alright?"

Mary looked up and Sirius saw that her cheek was no longer swollen and red. He wasn't the only one who noticed. "Say Padfoot, when Jonathan was trying to punch her, are you sure he actually _hit_ her?" James asked, looking at Mary. "She doesn't look hurt."

Sirius shot James an annoyed look and walked towards Mary and Lily, leaving James and Remus behind. He could see that Cassidy was waving frantically at him from the corner of his eye, but he decided to ignore her and sat down next to Mary, who was busy trying to convince Lily that she was doing fine.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, fine," Mary said, looking at him.

He gently touched her cheekbone and smiled. "I see you decided to pay dear Madam Pomfrey a visit after all."

"Yes, I did. Just like you said. She healed my cheek in about ten seconds."

"What did she say?" Lily asked.

"About what?"

"About Jonathan attacking you, silly!"

"Oh, that. Well eh... Actually..." But Sirius didn't need her to finish that sentence. He softly pinched Mary in her waist. When her hand shot to her side at once and she cringed from the pain, he knew enough.

"Not the pillar-excuse again," he groaned, shooting a desperate look at the enchanted ceiling.

"Pillar-excuse?" Lily asked, shooting them a confused look.

Mary glared at Sirius (who managed to stare back reproachfully with blinking once) before rolling her eyes. "Alright, alright", she said as she was carefully nursing her ribcage. "I told Madam Pomfrey the same thing as when I talked to Zabini: that I wasn't looking carefully and ran straight into a pillar."

"And she believed a crappy story like that?" Lily asked with an incredulous look on her fair face.

"She said I was the second student that morning who had walked straight into a pillar and bumped his head. I think we all can guess who that other person was."

"Jonathan," Sirius growled, shooting a dark look at the Ravenclaw table.

"You hit him pretty hard, you know," Mary said, looking down at his hand. "Perhaps you should let Madam Pomfrey take a look at your hand as well."

Sirius, whose hand was throbbing a bit, shrugged. "Maybe, but not now."

Mary lifted an eyebrow at him which made Sirius laugh. "I suppose you're right. Lets make a deal: I'll let Madam Pomfrey look at my hand if you report Jonathan to McGonagall."

Mary seemed to consider this for a moment before she shook her head. "No."

"You _are_ going to report this to McGonagall, right?" Lily said.

"I don't know," Mary shrugged. "Everything ended well, didn't it? I just don't think it would do any good, that's all."

"Any good?" Lily snapped. "He _hit_ you, Mary. Well, if you're not going to report him, I will."

Mary stared at her friend in horror. "You wouldn't."

"As Headgirl, it's my duty to do so. Now, what's it going to be, then? You telling it directly to McGonagall or letting me inform her about this, which means you'll have to talk to her sooner or later anyway."

Mary looked from Lily to Sirius, who was whistling innocently as he stared down at her Potions book and back at Lily again. "You're not leaving me much choice here, are you?"

End of update

**A/N: Okay, minor cliffie. Sorry about that… I'll try to update this again as soon as possible. After all, it's already written so it shouldn't be that hard ;) Reviews are well appreciated! Mara **


	18. Do No Harm

**Chapter Eighteen**

A tiny smile crept over Lily's face and she shook her head. "No."

Mary stared at Lily for a moment, silently begging her not to do this, but this appeared to have the exact opposite effect. Her friend jumped up from her seat, walked around the table with a determined look on her face and pulled Mary up by her arm. 

"Ouch!" Mary said as she felt a sharp pain at her right side.

"Hey careful!" Sirius told Lily as he rose as well.

"Oops, I forgot about that for a second. I'm so sorry, Mare."

"None taken," Mary grimaced, nursing her side as she straightened up a litle more carefully by herself.

The three of them walked to James and Remus. "Are you alright, Mary?" Remus asked her with a concerned look on his face.

Mary smiled at him. "I'm fine. You on the other hand look no less than exhausted. Perhaps you should sit down."

Remus smiled and nodded. "Yeah... Yeah, I think I should."

"We need to get going. McGonagall should be in her office at this time and we don't want to miss her," Lily interrupted. She looked at James. "You're coming too, right?"

James nodded. "Of course."

"I think I'll stay behind and inform Peter and Brice when they get back," Remus said. He smiled at Mary and patted her softly on the shoulder. "Good luck, you'll be alright."

Remus walked towards their end of the table to sit down and the others walked out of the Great Hall together. They walked on in complete silence for a while, only bidding good day to Nearly Headless Nick and the Grey Lady who were floating down a corridor together. When they were climbing the stairs to the fourth floor where McGonagall's office was situated, Sirius was the first one to break the silence. "Mary, what did Zabini need from you?"

"Oh, he just wanted to analyze my performance in the maze."

James snorted. "You kicked ass, that's what. To beat Remus and Snape like that, it was no less than _amazing_."

Mary smiled. "That's what Zabini said. He asked me whether I've ever considered becoming an Auror and stated that scouting promising 'Aurors-to-be' is "another" one of his hidden talents. He also told me he's only spotted three candidates so far: you, Sirius and me."

"Seriously?" James asked, exchanging an excited look with Sirius. "Well, I guess I'm not _that_ surprised; we do rock when it comes to Defense. It would be cool, though, the three of us hanging out together at Auror training."

"But Mary doesn't want to become an Auror. You've been dying to get into the Healing Program ever since you got into Hogwarts, right?" Lily asked.

Mary shrugged. "Zabini said that it's possible to become an Auror with a specialism in Healing."

Sirius looked at her. "Is that really what you want? Don't get me wrong, I certainly wouldn't mind having you around in the same classes for the next three years; gives me something pretty to look at. But are you sure?"

Mary was so unsettled by Sirius's penultimate remark that she couldn't really remember what their conversation had been about at first. It was only because he continued to stare at her curiously that she managed to figure out that they were discussing the possibilities of Auror training. "Eh... No, I'm not. I need some more time to think about it, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't intrigued."

Sirius smiled at her and she smiled back, and much too soon for Mary's liking she heard Lily saying: "We're here."

They were standing in front of McGonagall's office. The door of the room of their Transfiguration Professor stood wide open and although they couldn't exactly see the Professor at the moment, they _could_ hear her and it was very clear that she was not in a very good mood. McGonagall was currently delivering a huge sermon on inappropriate behaviour to a couple of students who - apparently - had thrown three bags of dungbombs (all at the same time) in Filch's office.

Mary heard McGonagall's stern preaching voice, imagined the flaring nostrils that usually came with it and shivered slightly. There was _no_ way McGonagall would be understanding about what happened with Jonathan now, what was she _thinking_? "I think it might be better if we'll try this again later," she mumbled and turned on her heels to walk off, only to be halted by both Sirius and Lily.

"No Mare, you _have_ to do this. And remember that we'll be right there with you," Lily said.

"It's going to be fine. Go on..." Sirius said encouragingly as he turned her back around and gently pushed her into the direction of McGonagall's office.

The four "Dungbomb"-students (second-year Gryffindors by the looks of it) were walking out of McGonagall's office. James looked down at them with an approving and somewhat proud look on his face. "Look Padfoot, it's the next generation of the Marauders. Way to go, guys!" he said, putting his thumbs up at the boys, who continued to walk down the corridor with their heads bowed.

Sirius laughed and Lily shook her head (but _did_ smile), but Mary merely swallowed. This was it, then. She was really going to do this. She hesitantly walked into the office and knocked on the (already open) door. McGonagall looked up, apparently still annoyed about the dungbombs-situation, because her nostrils were flaring dangerously.

"Good afternoon, Miss Woods. To what do I own this pleasure of you-" she noticed that Lily, Sirius and James were also stepping into the office "Miss Evans, Mr. Black and Mr. Potter paying me a visit?" She shot them a stern, yet expecting look.

"I eh... came to... report someone, Professor," Mary said quietly.

"Who? And perhaps more relevant: why?"

Mary looked back over her shoulder at Lily for help. "Mary is reporting that she got attacked by Jonathan McLaggen early this morning, Professor," her friend said, stepping forward.

McGonagall frowned. "Attacked? By that you mean he jinxed her?"

Lily shook her head. "No, more like punching, hitting and kicking her." She shot Mary a look and shrugged. "He beat her up, basically."

McGonagall's bad mood disappeared within the blink of an eye. She looked generally concerned as she ushered Mary and the others to sit down in front of her desk. "Tell me exactly what happened," she told Mary.

And she did. Mary told McGonagall the whole story, from oversleeping to forgetting her Herbology book and finally, getting thrown against the courtyard wall by Jonathan. When she'd arrived by the part of where Jonathan was hitting her and Sirius coming to the rescue, McGonagall's mouth had became so thin that it barely existed. "So he hit and threw you around. Did you get seriously injured?" she asked.

"Well, my cheekbone got a bit swollen, but Madam Pomfrey was able to heal that in an instant."

McGonagall nodded. "Good. Anywhere else?"

"Ehm well, my side got bruised when I hit the wall, I suppose, but Madam Pomfrey didn't heal that."

"And why not?"

"Because she didn't know."

McGonagall lifted an eyebrow, but seemed to interpret why Mary didn't tell Madam Pomfrey about it correctly. "Would you mind if I took a look at your side?" she asked, not unkindly.

"Eh no, I guess not," Mary said, standing up slowly.

"You two," McGonagall snapped as she turned and glared at James and Sirius. "Look the other way."

The guys exchanged a look before shrugging and turning around, but Sirius did not move that much. He had narrowed his eyes slightly, but didn't entirely close them and (once Mary had lifted up her sweater to show her side to McGonagall) when he heard Lily gasp, opened his eyes. What he saw made him swear silently. Mary's ribcage was black and blue; it had been badly bruised and there was a large scrape that was an exact indication of where she had hit the wall. He instantly wished he would have punched Jonathan a little harder.

"I've seen enough," McGonagall said, straightening Mary's official Gryffindor sweater in a highly unusual, almost mother-like fashion. "Mr. Potter and Mr. Black, I would like you to go and alert Professor Flitwick and accompany him to the Headmaster's office." She shot them a close look and, as if she was able to read Sirius's mind, said: "Should you come across Mr. McLaggen or his friends on the way, I insist that none of you will do anything rash. This matter is out of your hands now."

James and Sirius nodded gravely and left McGonagall's office together in silence.

"Miss Evans, you will accompany Miss Woods to the Hospital Wing where Madam Pomfrey will take care of her remaining injuries. Afterwards both of you will come to Professor Dumbledore's office."

Lily and Mary stood up from their seats and walked straight towards the Hospital Wing. They didn't say much along the way, besides wondering what was going to happen to Jonathan. Madam Pomfrey was - at the very least - not pleased with Mary. After calling her a stupid girl and a liar for about twenty times, the school nurse eventually did heal Mary's ribcage and she and Lily were ready to go again.

When they were almost near Dumbledore's office, Lily suddenly said: "Aren't you glad you reported him?"

"I suppose so. But even if I wasn't, there's no turning back now."

"I guess not."

They had arrived at Dumbledore's office, where James was waiting in front of the gargoyle, leaning back against the wall. "What happened?" Lily asked. "Forgot the password?"

James laughed. "Of course I haven't forgotten the password. They're questioning Sirius up there right now."

Mary frowned. "Why is that?"

"To tell his side from the story, I reckon. He did save you after all."

Before James could have said anything else, the gargoyle came down and when it opened, Sirius stepped out. "How did it go?" James asked Sirius at once.

"If that didn't get him expelled, I don't know what will," Sirius replied, looking confident as ever.

"What in Merlin's name did you tell them?" Mary asked him anxiously.

"The truth of course, what else? How's your side doing?"

"As good as new," she smiled.

At that moment, McGonagall appeared in the gargoyle. "Miss Woods, we are ready for you now. The rest of you can go back to the Common Room."

Mary looked at Sirius who seemed to mouthing "Go get them, girl!" and, still feeling a bit hesitant, she finally stepped into the gargoyle. As Mary and McGonagall were slowly moving up to Dumbledore's office, she thought about what was waiting for her behind that heavy wooden door. Would - besides Dumbledore of course - Flitwick be there? What about Jonathan, his parents, the entire school board? She honestly had no idea what to expect, but she did know one thing: if telling Dumbledore and whoever else was in that office about what Jonathan did to her meant he would never be able to do that to her or anyone else again in the future, it was going to be worth it.

End of Update


	19. Amends

**Chapter Nineteen**

The gargoyle came to a halt and McGonagall ushered Mary to walk towards the door of Dumbledore's office. The Professor stayed behind and when Mary knocked and heard the word "enter", she slowly opened the door and walked into Dumbledore's chamber.

The office looked as it always did (rather messy for a Professor's office) with a large number of heavy bookcases, moving portraits of former Hogwarts Headmasters on the wall, some odd-looking silver instruments on the desk and last but not least, Fawkes the Phoenix, who was snoozing on top of a closet in a corner.

"Ah Mary, I'm glad to see you. Come on in," Dumbledore said kindly. Contrary to the other Hogwarts Professors, the Headmaster always addressed students by their first name. That, his twinkling blue eyes and the kind soft voice in which he spoke had the effect of making you feel at ease in his presence at once.

Mary walked over to Dumbledore's desk and as he gestured her to sit down in a comfy armchair (with a bright red and purple spotted print), she noticed that besides the Headmaster, there was no one else in the room. No Flitwick, no school board and to her utter relief: no Jonathan or his parents. She relaxed slightly in her chair.

"I understand that Madam Pomfrey has now fully healed your injuries, so there are no more hidden bruises to be discovered?" (Mary shook her head) "Excellent. Lets have some tea, shall we? I take it that you like earl grey?"

Mary looked at him in surprise. His eyes twinkled when he said: "I do talk with my Professors when they're about to advise a student on alternative career moves. And being an Auror could come in handy these days, although admittedly, it is sometimes also very dangerous."

"Well, I haven't made up my mind just yet."

"You still have time," Dumbledore said, smiling. "However, as much as I like to discuss career moves, that is not why you are here. Professor McGonagall, Jonathan and Sirius have informed me about what they thought happened this morning, but I also need to hear your side of the story. I realize that this must be a difficult and rather uncomfortable situation for you, but sometimes talking about a bad experience can relieve the burden."

Mary cleared her throat. "Jonathan was here?"

"Yes, while you were down at the Hospital Wing. Professor Flitwick was guiding him back to the Ravenclaw Common Room and I think we can expect him back anytime... Ah Filius, glad you could join us again."

Mary turned around in her seat and saw that Flitwick had entered Dumbledore's office. Their tiny Charms Professor was panting slightly as he waddled towards them. "Miss Woods, I hope you are alright," he said in his squeaky voice as he crawled up on a high stool that Dumbledore had conjured for him.

"Yes, sir," Mary said shyly before sipping her tea.

"Wonderful. Now that we are all here; Mary, please tell us exactly what happened," Dumbledore said.

And she did. For the second time that day, Mary explained everything decided to leave nothing out this time, not even that she had lied to Madam Pomfrey about her injuries. Dumbledore and Flitwick listened with a concerned look on their faces, but let her speak without interrupting once and that worked. Telling them what happened actually made her feel like a heavy burden was falling off her shoulders.

When she had finished her story, Dumbledore sat up a little more straight and shot her a close look. "Can you think of any reason why Jonathan acted the way he did?"

"No... Not really. Well, we went out last year for a while, but that didn't work out, because he's extremely possessive. He wanted to get back together, but I declined, so yeah, that could be a reason why he did this. Or maybe he's just jealous because of Sirius. Well, not that I'm going out with _him_, but..." Mary stopped talking at once when she realized that she was currently discussing her love life with Dumbledore and Flitwick. 

She shot a look at the portraits on the walls and noticed that they were also paying attention and listening closely. She blushed and stared at her shoes instead.

"No matter how you look at it, he did harass you," Flitwick said thoughtfully. "There's no way we could get around that. Albus, I think that we should inform the school board."

Mary looked up in shock. "The school board?"

Dumbledore nodded. "It's the most sensible course of action, Mary. You see, Jonathan may not do this again to you, but what about other students? I need to know if it's safe to let him walk around the school alone."

He rose from his seat and (under consenting mumbling of the portraits) walked towards the fireplace, threw some floo powder in it and shouted into the fireplace: "Debra, could you join us?"

The fire in Dumbledore's fireplace blazed up for an instant before a tall witch crawled out. She dusted off her robes, shook Dumbledore's hand and as she straightened her head, Mary noticed that this witch was having such a strict facial expression that it would make McGonagall look like a happy schoolgirl. She walked towards Mary and they shook hands. "Michaels, Debra; chairman of the school board," she said curtly, eyeing her from head to toe.

"Woods, Mary," Mary answered automatically. "It's nice to meet you," she added quickly, remembering her manners.

After Dumbledore had conjured another arm chair (this time with a Burberry pattern) and Michaels sat down, the Headmaster asked Mary to tell the story once more, which she did, although she avoided eye contact with Michaels as much as possible. She feared that noticing one disapproving look from the strict witch's side would wipe out all her guts to explain what happened.

"Very well," Michaels said as soon as Mary had finished. "I shall take this up with the school board, Albus. In the meantime, consider this boy McLaggen grounded in every sense of the word. Miss Woods, you did the right thing by reporting this," she said as she stood up. After wishing Dumbledore and Flitwick a good day, she chucked some floo power into the fireplace and disappeared.

Flitwick let himself slide off his stool. "I should inform the other Professors about this development, and Mr. McLaggen of course." He looked at Mary. "I do hope this... experience will not decrease your focus in Charms. You belong to the top of your class and I would hate to see that change."

"You shouldn't need to worry about that, sir," Mary said smiling. 

Flitwick gave her a tiny nod and left Dumbledore's office. When Mary looked at the Headmaster, he was standing in front of the window as he stared out over the Hogwarts grounds and the lake.

"Sir..." Mary said hesitantly. "What's going to happen to Jonathan?"

Dumbledore didn't answer at once. He kept looking out over the grounds for another while before he sighed. "Love is a complicated thing, is it not? When experiencing, it is the most incredible feeling in the world. But when one person stops loving while the other does not... It can make people go temporarily insane."

"Sir, are you blaming me-"

"No, no - no one _but_ Jonathan is to blame for what happened today. And I certainly will not take this lightly. I've already informed his family and I shall need to write to your parents as well."

Mary groaned inwardly and closed her eyes for a moment. Her father was so protective about her; she'd expect to have him storm into Hogwarts in about two days.

"Of course, things could have been a lot worse, but thanks to Sirius Black, I will not have to write your parents _that_ kind of letter. You and him seem to have become close over the last few weeks."

"Ehm... Maybe, but like I said before: we're not dating or anything."

Dumbledore shot her a close look. "Well, I shall no longer hold you up. But keep in mind that love is accessible to anyone with anyone, as long as their hearts are open to it." He give her a significant wink before he guided her out of the office.

While Mary was walking back to the Common Room (she had been in Dumbledore's office for hours and diner time was already over. Not that it mattered; she wasn't feeling hungry anyway), she thought about what Dumbledore had just said. Did he actually suggest that she should go out with Sirius? She thought he might, but wasn't entirely sure – Dumbledore always talked in riddles and she wasn't good at solving those. Maybe she should talk to Brice about this... The instant Mary walked into the Common Room, she got jumped by James, Lily, Brice, Peter and Remus.

"How did it go?"  
"What's going to happen to that jerk?"  
"Who did you have to report to?"

"Guys, relax! Please," Mary said as she flopped down on a chair near the window, grabbed a Witch Weekly from the table and started to read it.

Brice stared at her for a moment before snatching the magazine out of her hands. "Oh come on, you've got to give us something! How did it go?"

Mary sighed. "I told Dumbledore and Flitwick everything. And then I had to tell it all over again to this unkind chairman from the school board. Frankly Brice, I've done enough talking for one day, so please don't ask me to get into this again."

Brice looked a bit taken aback by her snappy response, but nodded and kept her mouth shut. James on the other hand, who was now holding the Witch Weekly in his hands, looked even more intrigued. "What was the name of the chairman?"

Mary tiredly rubbed her face. "Debra Michaels or something."

The magazine dropped out of his hands. "_The_ Debra Michaels? Are you sure? Because that means Jonathan is in some real trouble. Michaels used to work on the Ministry and is known for her aversion of men that molest women. My dad told me about her once, said she managed to get a wizard sent to Azkaban for ten years because he accidentally hit his wife while he was sleepwalking."

Mary shrugged and gazed out of the window. "To be honest, I don't really care what happens to him." After another moment of staring outside, she shot a look around the Common Room. "Where is Sirius?"

"Hospital Wing," Peter said while chewing on a Cauldron Cake. "He was constantly whining about his injured hand, so James sent him to Madam Pomfrey."

"She'll be pleased about that," Mary snorted. "Another "victim" of that fight."

"Oh, she will," Peter said without a note of sarcasm. "Pomfrey is always very taken with "Mr. Black"." He said those last words in a perfect imitation of the school nurse's high voice.

Mary smiled and noticed that Coco had just entered the room. She got up from the chair, called her softly (the cat trotted to her at once), picked her up and sat down against the back of the couch near the fire, where there weren't so many people around. She pressed her nose into Coco's neck like she always did when she was sad and as if Coco knew, she rolled around and put her tiny paw against the tip of her nose. Mary couldn't help but smile over this act of affection and was just tickling Coco behind her ears when she noticed that Sirius was standing next to them.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked her, completely unnecessary since he had already sat down before he finished his sentence.

"No," Mary said. She looked at him. "You got Madam Pomfrey to heal your hand."

"Says who?"

"Peter."

"Oh." He looked a bit disappointed. "And here I was planning to hang up a great story about how I hooked up with a girl and spend the last two hours snogging her in a distant broom cupboard."

Mary chuckled and kissed Coco on the head. Sirius looked at the cat before he suddenly asked: "Mind if I borrow her for a sec?"

"Eh... Sure. But I should warn you: Coco is like a unicorn. She doesn't like strangers, least of all men."

However, Coco didn't seem to mind getting touched by Sirius at all. On the contrary, she was enjoying it so much that she crawled up on his lap and started to purr contently as he tickled her under the chin.

"This is _so_ not like Coco. Last time my dad tried to stroke her, she attacked his hand," Mary said with confused look on her face as she witnessed Sirius and Coco "hanging out together".

Sirius smirked. "Don't worry, it's me. I happen to have a mesmerizing effect on female cats."

"Not just cats," Mary blurted out before she could stop herself.

Sirius looked at her in mock surprise. "Why Miss Woods! Do I dare to think that you just gave me a _compliment_?"

Mary narrowed her eyes slightly, trying to conceal that was blushing fiercely. "Well yes, I guess so. Now don't get too high-handed over this."

Sirius smiled and - as Coco was now laying on her back and stretched out completely - focused on stroking the cat's belly for a moment before he seem to make his mind up about something. "Say, you know Hogsmeade weekend is due next week?"

"Hmmm?"

"D'you wanna come with me?"

Mary couldn't say she was surprised that he was asking her out, but it did have a great effect on her. For one, the partying butterflies in her belly had returned and appeared to have duplicated themselves in their absence and she was feeling terribly nervous. She had been dreading this moment for so long... But when Mary looked at Sirius, all the doubts she ever had about him disappeared once and for all. She knew that he was being sincere about this and that she wasn't just "another girl" to him. Dumbledore's words about love resounded in her head onece time before she finally made up her mind for good and smiled. "I'd really like that."

End of Update

**A/N: So****… She finally agreed to go out with him. About time, right? ;) Anyway, I hope you all liked these chapters. Let me know what you think! I'll try to post the next two chapters tomorrow. Mara **


	20. Bad Moon Rising

**Chapter Twenty**

The news that Sirius and Mary were going to Hogsmeade together spread faster than a speeding charm. Within less than a day, everybody at Hogwarts knew about their date. Sirius had no idea how this happened; he didn't mention it to anyone except his friends and, as far as he knew, nor did Mary. But whoever was responsible for spreading the rumor, the effect had been immediate. Sirius got even more attention than usual; from girls _and_ guys. Some girls (including Cassidy Donaldson) were now literally throwing themselves onto him, practically begging him to take them to Hogsmeade instead of Mary. Most of the guys were, besides disappointed, mostly complimentary and wondered how in Merlin's name Sirius managed to get the girl who despised him for years in the end. 

Not that he already had her. He was going to, there was no hair on his head that still had doubts about that. All he had to do was waiting for the opportune moment. But considering the wonderful weather (snow everywhere!) of the past days and the thing he had in mind for their date, everything should be fine. James, who was celebrating his eighteenth birthday today, was still feeling a lttle bemused over the fact that Mary had agreed to go out with Sirius and that he was still unable to win over Lily.

A few days before Sirius would take Mary to Hogsmeade, he, James and Peter (Remus was absent because of the full moon) had been hanging out in the courtyard during their morning break and were now walking to Charms together. "Should I ask her out now?" James asked Sirius.

"I don't know, Prongs," Sirius said as he stifled a yawn. "It's only 9.30 in the morning. Did you say anything to Lily?"

"Ehm… I wished her a good morning."

"Right, so you haven't talk to her at all yet. I would wait if I were you," Peter said.

James rolled his eyes at him. "And since when are you the expert?"

"Actually," Sirius said. "Wormtail does have a point. Make sure to talk a bit before you pop the big question. Although it might be a good move to ask her out today."

"That's what I was thinking. She cannot possibly turn me down on my birthday." James said confidently.

Peter snorted. "Are we talking about the same girl here?"

They all laughed. "Well, a guy can hope, right?" James sniggered before spotting someone and elbowing Sirius in the ribs. Sirius looked around, followed his friends gaze and saw that his brother Regulus was walking towards them.

"You guys go ahead," Sirius muttered to James and Peter, who nodded and walked on, leaving Sirius behind. He turned to Regulus and said casually: "Hello bro."

But Regulus obviously wasn't going to waste any time on small talk. "What do you think you're doing?"

Sirius had a sneaky suspicion about what his brother was referring to, but he decided to act clueless. "Sorry?"

"To get mingled with people like _her_."

Sirius gave Regulus a cold look. "That is my business. And _she_ has a name."

Regulus made a scornful sound. "Oh yeah and what a name she has. Pretty she might be, but she'll always remain a filthy Mudblood."

Sirius grabbed Regulus by the collar of his robes. "Watch your tongue, bro."

Regulus didn't seem to be afraid of getting choked by Sirius. "Right when I think you couldn't possibly sink any lower, you go and do something unforgivably stupid like this; what are mum and dad going to say?"

"I suppose you already sent them an owl about the happy news?"

"Yeah, I did."

Sirius let Regulus go and pushed him off. "Have it your way, then. I already moved out and that was the best decision I've made all my life. I don't care what mum and dad thinks about Mary, because as far as I'm concerned, they are not my family anymore." He walked away without looking back, even though he did hear Regulus shout: "You're choosing death by doing this. The Dark Lord is becoming more powerful every day and he will show no mercy to Mudbloods _and_ their associates!", but chose not to respond.

When he finally entered the Charms classroom, he was right on time. "Please close the door behind you, Mr. Black," Professor Flitwick said as Sirius stepped into the door. He walked to the back of the classroom where the others had sat down. His gloomy mood disappeared at once when he noticed Brice and Lily were braiding Mary's hair, who was giggling madly because Brice was pulling too hard.

"Could the ladies in the back please desist with what they're doing and pay attention to the lesson," Flitwick said with a note of amusement in his voice.

Still chuckling, Brice and Lily let go of Mary's hair. And while Flitwick was explaining the non-verbal benefits of the Speeding Charm, Sirius simply couldn't keep his eyes from Mary who was slowly removing the braids from her hair while she paid attention to the lesson. He couldn't wait to tell her about his plans for their date and as soon as Flitwick had left the class for a moment and everyone started talking loudly, he leaned forward and whispered into her ear: "Now look what you have done. Because you were distracting me by playing with your hair, I haven't heard a single word from what Flitwick said."

Mary turned around in her seat and smiled at him. "You could have looked straight over my head, you know."

"I didn't want to."

She noticed that James was witnessing their conversation closely and gave Sirius a tiny smile. "Alright, in short: when you use the Speeding Charm non-verbally, you can outwin you opponent by a few seconds which will give you the needed advantage to win the duel."

"Right, that sounds like a piece of cake. Now, what I really wanted to talk about is next Saturday."

Mary looked interested. "What about it?"

"I've been thinking… I could show you around Hogsmeade."

"For your information: I've been going to the same school for six and a half years and have visited Hogsmeade as many times as you have."

He laughed. "Thanks for clarifying that, but no: I mean _really_ show you around. I bet there are still places that you know nothing about."

Mary leaned back in her chair and lifted an eyebrow. "Hmm, you do have my attention. Alright, lets see if you can show me some new things."

She smiled at him and Sirius grinned back and when she turned around to say something to Brice, he looked at James and noticed that his friend had made notes of their little conversation. "You wrote it _down_?" he asked, shaking his head in surprise. His friend merely laughed and shrugged, but before he could have said anything, Flitwick returned and ordered the class to start practicing the spell at once.

After Charms, when they were walking to the Great Hall for lunch, Sirius informed James and Peter on what Regulus had said and they all reacted very indignant. "That guy deserves a good kick in the butt," James said agrily. Peter patted Sirius on the shoulder while he said: "You're a lot better off without them, mate."

While they were having lunch, the three of them decided that tonight (after James's birthday party) they would sneak out of the castle to pay Remus a little Animagus-visit. They knew that McGonagall would definitely put an end to the party around midnight, so it would be half past twelve at the very least before they could join their friend and his furry little problem.

When lunch break was over, Peter left for his Muggle Studies class. Brice and Lily went to the Common Room to study Defense against the Dark Arts, but Mary lingered behind with James and Sirius, who were planning on doing another Quidditch work out. "James, do you have a moment?" Mary asked.

"Eh yeah, sure."

Mary looked at Sirius, who lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "Oh, you're sending me away, are you?"

"Yeah."

"Fine, I guess I'll know my place," he laughed and stood up. "See you at the practice field, mate," he said and walked out of the Great Hall, not even noticing that he was being closely followed by at least six girls.

"Listen," Mary said as she looked back from shooting a somewhat annoyed look at those girls. "What I'm about to do breaks all unofficial laws of girl friendship. In fact, Brice said that the one I'm referring to has every right to hex me into oblivion, and I agree."

James rubbed his nose. "Ehm… So why are you doing this? Whatever it may be," he added, looking confused as he frowned at her.

"Because I think it's going to the best for all of us in the end."

"Right. So what-"

"-James, I think you should ask Lily out tonight."

He gazed at her with his mouth hanging wide open. "What?" he spluttered eventually.

Mary laughed. "I promise you, with the hand on my heart, that if you'll ask her out, she will say yes. In a normal way, that is…" she added, looking a bit anxious.

"A normal way. And what is… How am I… How do you think I should do that?"

Mary stared at him as if he had come from another planet. "Merlin's Beard..." she said, heaving a sigh. "Right, I'm going to feed this to you sentence for sentence. Do not bluntly ask her out of nowhere, just do some small talk first. Come on man, don't look so afraid. You're not socially retarded and Lily is not a monster who'll eat you when you say something stupid."

James smiled. "I guess you're right. Small talk won't be a problem. We've been doing nothing else since we're patrolling together."

"Exactly. And then you'll ask her casually: 'Lily, I was thinking: would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?'"

"And that'll do the trick?"

"That'll do the trick," Mary nodded as she got up from her seat. She smiled at him and was about to walk away when James stopped her. "Wait, how can you be so sure that she won't turn me down again?"

"Because she told me she wouldn't," Mary said, smiling serenely. "Oh, and can I trust you to keep this quiet?"

"Naturally!" James said, some of his old arrogance already restored. "And thanks," he grinned. Mary smiled back and they walked out of the Hall together. 

Later that night there was a big birthday party in the Gryffindor Common Room. James had made sure there was plenty of food and drinks and sure enough; the table near the end of the room was simply bulging with butterbeer, cauldron cakes, chocolate frogs, sugarquills, cockroach crunchies and Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans (although most of those were soon gone due to the insatiable stomach of a certain Mr. Pettigrew.

James had received lots of great presents. Sirius had given him the newest broomstick cleaning kit on the market, Remus (who gave him his present before he went to the Shrieking Shack) a book about his favourite Quidditch team the Chudley Cannons and Peter an Ever-Bashing Boomerang. The girls gave him two tickets to a Chudley Cannons match by choice, which he simply adored. James asked Lily to go to the match with him at once, but she declined politely, saying she wasn't that much into Quidditch and that he should take someone who was instead.

James shot Mary, who was standing near the window with Sirius, a confused look and she casually shook her head while clearly mouthing back "Hogsmeade" in a neutral way. Sirius looked from Mary to James and back. "What was that all about?"

"Nothing you would care about," Mary said before sipping her butterbeer. She watched the partying crowd for a moment and smiled. "This is a great party. It's just a shame Remus can't be here."

Sirius shrugged. "Actually, I think Moony is just glad to be in bed."

"That illness of him is the weirdest thing. I've been wondering about it for years. What kind of disease comes back monthly?"

"Ehm, not sure," Sirius said, looking a bit nervous. "Would you like to dance?"

But Mary wasn't listening. She was staring out of the window and gazed at the full moon with widening eyes. Sirius felt a feeling of foreboding as he saw how the realization of Remus's absence slowly dawned on her face. "Oh… My…" she mumbled, looking dumfounded, but Sirius didn't gave her a chance to finish that sentence. He pulled her out of the Common Room and dragged her along all the way to a distant broom cupboard. As soon as they were inside, he turned towards her and looked at her flabbergasted face. He grabbed her hands and squeezed them softly, trying to force her to pull her mind to the present. He stared right into her bright blue eyes. "You cannot say anything. Promise me you won't say anything."

She finally looked up at him and swallowed with difficulty. "Remus…" she said slowly. "Is a werewolf?"

End of Update


	21. Confessions

**Chapter Twenty-One**

The words that were coming out of Mary's mouth felt surreal. The idea that her guess was accurate and that Remus actually was a werewolf, was absolutely terrifying and Mary was sincerely hoping that she got it completely wrong, but that hope flew right out of the window when she looked into Sirius's eyes.

Sirius hadn't even said anything, but he didn't need to: Mary already knew. She had been right… Remus _was_ a werewolf. For years she'd been wondering and trying to figure what his big secret was but now that she had, she wasn't entirely sure if she was so happy about it. She desperately tried to get her head around the fact that Remus was a werewolf, but that was easier said than done. Her voice was barely more than a whisper when she said: "He is, isn't he? I can see it in your eyes, he's a werewolf."

Sirius stared at her for a moment. Then he closed his eyes and nodded. "Yes… Yes, he is."

Mary let go of his hands and stumbled backwards slowly until her left foot hit a wooden box of cleaning equipments. She flopped down on the edge of the box and stared at a tiny spider that was making a web between two brooms that had been put against the wall. Sirius, still standing near the back of the broom cupboard, said in an almost pleading voice: "You cannot tell anyone. It will ruin his life if you do."

He walked towards her and sat down on a bucket that was turned upside down, facing her. "Do you hear what I'm saying, Mary? It's crucial that you will keep this to yourself," he repeated in an urgent voice.

"I just… I cannot believe it. I don't understand why I didn't see it before, but now that I have… This is just awful."

Sirius's head jerked up in sudden anger. "That there is a _werewolf_ inside the walls of Hogwarts?!" he snapped at her. "I know that many pure- and halfblood wizards are raised in a ridiculous fear of werewolves, but I honestly would have expected that a Muggle-born like yourself is less narrow minded!"

Mary looked at him in shock. "What?" she managed to splutter eventually. "No wait, you're getting this all wrong! What I meant is that I'm feeling sorry for Remus, that it's awful that such a sweet guy has to cope with this… this condition."

"Oh." Sirius rubbed his nose. "Sorry."

"That's ok."

He shook his head and smiled as he pulled a hand through his hair. "I - or we actually - sometimes just get very protective when it comes to Remus."

Mary smiled at him, pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees. "How long have you known?"

"Second year. When all the lies about visiting his sick parents, dog or grandmother couldn't deceive us any longer. One night James, Peter and I just confronted him with our suspicions – like you, we wondered what kind of disease only appears when it's full moon – and he confessed in the end."

"And you guys stuck by him?"

"Of course! Personally, I thought it was a coolest thing to have a werewolf as one of my closest friends. Hoped it might come in handy one day if Lucius or Bella were bugging me again."

Mary laughed. She remembered Sirius's encounters with his cousins in their first Hogwarts years all too well. They used to curse him whenever he passed them in the corridors.

"Of course, we wouldn't be us if we didn't try and do something about it."

Mary frowned. "Try to cure a werewolf? But that's not possible."

"No, but there are other ways to ah… ease Remus's transformations."

Mary looked puzzled. "But how-"

"Listen, since we are on the truth-path already, I'm going to tell you something but again, you _have_ to keep it quiet or you'll risk me and the others getting expelled."

Mary looked at him for a moment, wondering if she would want to hear this, but her curiosity got the better of her in the end. "Alright," she nodded.

Sirius leaned in a little closer. "Werewolves are - of course - very dangerous to humans, but harmless to other animals."

Mary stared at him blankly. "So…?"

"_So_… James, Peter and I became Animagi."

Mary stared at Sirius with her mouth open, looking stunned. "You… did… what?"

"We learned how to transform into animals and have joined Remus in his hiding place ever since," Sirius clarified.

"That… That's..." she said, struggling for the right words.

"An amazing achievement?" Sirius said, smirking.

"I was going for illegal." When Mary saw the look of disappointment on his face she quickly added: "But amazing all the same. Becoming an Animagus… That's very advanced magic. When did you manage to transform?"

"Fifth year," Sirius said with a note of pride in his voice.

"Wow, that's incredible, but also bit hard to believe. I mean-" she spoke quickly when Sirius opened his mouth looking annoyed again "-Not you and James, but Peter isn't the most talented wizard. How did he pull it off?"

"With many hours of tutoring from me and James. But he did make it work in the end."

"That's fantastic. What kind of animal are you?'

"What do you think?" Sirius asked her teasingly.

Mary shot his body an examining look. "Well, you're strong and athletic, which should reflect on your Animagus form. You're also intelligent, so I'm thinking… A cheetah?"

Sirius laughed. "Close, but no. I'm a dog."

Mary burst out laughing as well and it was not an admiring one. "A _dog_?" she snorted.

Sirius narrowed his eyes at her. "I'm not a small dog like a teckel if that's what you think."

"Of course you're not," Mary grinned back. With an amused look on her face she said: "Show me."

"What, here?"

"Yes."

"I don't think so. We've been out here for a while and if someone opens that door and catches you with a large black scruffy dog, what are they going to think?"

Mary smiled. "I guess you're right. So you're a big black dog and Remus is a werewolf, or Moony as you guys call him." She suddenly gasped. "That's why you're Padfoot!"

Sirius smiled at her. "Clever girl. Care to guess what Prongs means?"

"Prongs… That's a stag! James is a stag? Wow, if only Lily knew…"

"Well, she can't. At least not until we're well out of Hogwarts or Remus decides to share his ah… furry little problem."

Mary giggled and Sirius chuckled before he asked her: "And what about Wormtail?"

"That would be some sort of rodent, right? Which suits him with his insatiable desire to eat. He likes cheese, too. Is he a mouse?"

"A rat to be more specific."

Mary started to laugh aloud. Sirius joined in sniggering until they heard the sudden sound of approaching footsteps and he clasped a hand over her mouth. Both of them looked at the door in shock before Sirius managed to pull Mary to the back of the cupboard where they hid against the wall behind a rack of pots and buckets. Mary dared to lean across Sirius and peek through the shelves and notced that their visitor wasn't a friendly one. It was Argus Filch and his "dear" Mrs. Norris, the cat all Hogwarts students loathed with a passion. Sirius pulled her back and blocked her against the wall pushing himself close to her body to make them as invisible as possible.

"Well well, I sense that there are some insolent students in here that cannot keep their filthy parties inside their Common Room. Well, they're in big trouble when I get my hands on them. Track them down, my sweets, and daddy will take care of the rest."

Mrs. Norris mewed loudly and was probably staring in the direction of Sirius and Mary with her eerie eyes. Filch was holding up his oil lamp and the light it produced put their corner in full view. Luckily Sirius and Mary were hidden behind the rack, so they remained out of view. For the moment, because all Filch needed to do was to poke his head around the rack and they would be busted.

Thankfully, so far neither Filch nor Mrs. Norris weren't doing that. As Filch moved his oil lamp in another direction and the light left their corner, Mary relaxed slightly. She felt Sirius's firm, yet soft body against hers and it made her legs a bit wobbly. Pretty inconvenient at the moment, because since his legs were intertwined with hers, he would definitely notice if her legs were trembling. She quickly decided that if he would tease her about it later she would say that her legs trembled so badly because of the fear of being discovered by Filch.

However, this thought did not reduce the wobbliness of her legs. On the contrary, it became worse when she caught the hint of a musky scent in Sirius's neck, which was right near her nose. She realized that she had smelled it weeks ago in Slughorn's dungeon when they were making the Amortentia. She had loved that smell… And now she knew it was because it belonged to Sirius.

To Mary, this discovery was kind of hysterical. That, and the fact that she was in a broom cupboard with a guy (which she resented on principle), that guy being Sirius Black (something she once swore would never happen) and that they were huddled in a close embrace, made her want to giggle madly.

When Mary heard that Filch was rummaging around in the other side of the cupboard, her mouth was crinkling into a smile and she desperately tried to keep herself from bursting out laughing. Now not only her legs were being wobbly, her shoulders were also shaking with silent laughter. Sirius - who was of course noticing this – looked positively alarmed for a moment before he clapped his hand over her mouth and tried to put an end to her surreptitious laughter.

Filch and Mrs. Norris finally decided that there was nothing to see and left the cupboard. For good measure, Sirius and Mary remained in their forced position for another minute in case the caretaker would come back. When he didn't return and they heard his footsteps dying away, Sirius finally let go of Mary who gave in at once and burst out laughing. Sirius watched Mary as she was bending over and wiped the tears that were streaming down her face away.

"Eh… What's so funny?"

"The… The ir-o-niiy of… it all," Mary managed to stammer in between her laughs.

"Was it… Was it something I did?"

"No," she said, calming down slightly and clamping her hands to her stomach. "Oooh, my belly muscles… Sorry, it's just… Never mind, you wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

"I really rather not. Besides, in case Filch might have heard this and is now hurrying to his office to get one of his notorious torturing devices, we'd better head back."

Sirius - looking slightly disappointed - shrugged. "Fine. Just remember: not a _word_."

"My lips are sealed," Mary said, walking towards Sirius and, after she gave him a tiny kiss on his cheek and told him that she thought he was cute, she pulled him along by the hand to the Common Room. They had hardly crawled through the portrait hole when a flushed but happy Lily hurried over to them. "There you are! You've been gone for ages. Where have you been?"

"Eh," Mary said, glancing at Sirius. "We were ah… busy."

Lily, drawing the wrong conclusion, grinned. "That's great. Look Sirius, might if I borrow her for a sec?"

Sirius, who was just accioing three butterbeers with his wand, gave one of them to Lily and one to Mary, said: "No problem," and walked off to Peter, who – since the Bertie Botts Beans were all gone – was now feasting on the sugarquills.

Lily dragged Mary to a few empty seats near the fireplace, where Brice was hurled up on the couch, solving another one of her crossword puzzles. "What happened, Lil?" Mary asked, shooting her friend a curious look.

"I'm so happy and I still cannot believe it," Lily chattered at top speed. "I mean, it just happened in a normal way and I never considered that to be a possibility. It really caught me by surprise and of course I just had to-"

"-James asked her on a date to Hogsmeade and she said yes," Brice interrupted calmly, not even bothering to look up from her puzzle.

"Oh," Mary said, faking a surprised look. "That's wonderful, Lil. I'm happy for you."

Lily, who had calmed down a bit, smiled and sipped her butterbeer thoughtfully. "You wouldn't believe how mature James was about it. He just made some conversation with me at first and then asked me in a calm way. Of course, after I said I'd go with him, he couldn't resist jumping on top of the table and shouting 'I'm the king of the world!', whatever that means, but still… The way he handled it, you'd almost think someone talked to him. The whole thing had a female touch about it."

"Really?" Mary said nervously. "That's eh… hard to believe."

After Brice shot Mary a significant look, she said: "You were out with Sirius for quite some time. Did you have some fun in that broom cupboard?"

Mary remembered what she and Sirius had talked about. That Remus was a werewolf, and the others becoming animagi. She knew she couldn't mention any of this to her friends and what else did a boy and a girl do in a broom cupboard together? She realized how suspicious this all looked and started to blush. "We didn't make out, if that's what you mean."

Lily and Brice exchanged looks before they sniggered. "Suuuure," Lily said, crossing her arms. "What _have_ you been doing then, sweeping the floor?"

Mary shook her head. "We just talked."

"Talked? About what?"

"Just stuff. About what we're going to do next Saturday," Mary added quickly when she saw the incredulous looks on her friends faces.

Brice shrugged. "Fine. If you don't want to tell us, then don't. But if you think that we're going to believe that Sirius at least didn't attempt to kiss you, you're mad."

"He didn't, although we did hug closely for about five minutes."

"How?" Lily and Brice said almost simultaneously.

Mary laughed and filled them in on the Filch debacle, although she left out the part of smelling the musky scent in Sirius's neck.

"You guys were so lucky," Lily said. "So you really didn't kiss?"

"No. Well, I gave him a kiss on the cheek before we came back, but that's it. Not that I was going to snog him tonight anyway, so…"

"Why not?"

Mary shrugged. "Because I can." She rolled her eyes at her friends confused faces. "Don't you see what I'm doing? Sirius is a womaniser. He likes to hunt. Who am I to take away that element so soon? So I won't be kissing him before Saturday, at any rate."

"And you're not afraid he's going to give up on you and move on with someone else?" Lily asked.

"No. Although I have to admit that with the way I feel about him now, I'm not sure how much longer I can it make it last," Mary grinned.

Brice laughed, crinkled her unfinished puzzle and cast it into the fire. She yawned. "I don't know about you girls, but I'm off to bed."

"Night," Mary and Lily said and when Brice stood up, Mary couldn't help but wonder what she would think about Remus's secret and asked: "Hey Brice, who are you going with next weekend?"

Brice shrugged. "I don't know about Remus. He either doesn't fancy me or is blind to every hint. I've been smiling and swaying my hips in front of him for about two weeks and still, nothing! I don't know what it is about that guy."

"I think he's just shy," Lily said soothingly.

"Or maybe he's just having a lot on his mind," Mary answered thoughtfully.

Brice lifted her eyebrows. "Such as?"

"Nothing," she replied quickly.

"Yes," Mary retorted as she also got up form her seat. "I know that it's time to say goodnight to the guys and then get our well-deserved beauty sleep."

Thankfully, Brice did not ask anymore questions, but Mary still thought this whole "don't tell anyone Remus is a werewolf"- secret could be a big problem. She was a complete disaster at hiding things from her friends and making up stories wasn't her biggest talent either.

But what Mary did know, was that none of the problems that she ever had to deal with compared to Remus's reality of being a werewolf. She realized that she was really admiring his strength and courage. She smiled as she made a mental note tell him that one day soon. But her smile quickly faded from her face when she realized that she could never tell him how she felt, because he didn't know she knew.

End of Update

**A/N: Next up will b****e the date to the Hogsmeade… And we'll see what happens there. Ha, well I suppose you can guess what will happen. I Hope you liked this chapter. Next updates will be up here by Thursday night (GMT 1 time), so stay tuned! Mara **


	22. D Date

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

The week before the Hogsmeade weekend flew by without many notable events, unless you count that time when Sirius and Remus spotted Jonathan walking down a distant corridor on his own and cursed him simultaneously (Trip Hex and Leek Jinx), which resulted in a detention for Sirius and Remus and another trip to the hospital wing for Jonathan. They found out later that Jonathan had only briefly come back to Hogwarts to collect his stuff, because the school board had suspended him until the end of the year. And since he was a seventh-year student, this meant that he wouldn't be returning to school at all (except to take his NEWTS) and had to be home-schooled instead.

Mary couldn't say she was very bothered by this. It was just like Brice had said when Sirius and Remus informed them on the situation: "Serves him right!" Besides, she had other – more urgent – things on her mind. Mary still had trouble to act like she hadn't found out about Remus being a werewolf. Sirius had obviously informed James about it, because the morning after his birthday party he sneaked up on her and emphasized the importance of keeping (in his words) "Moony's furry little problem" a secret. So whenever Lily or Brice mentioned Remus's illness, she either quickly changed the subject or ran off to the loos and for the moment, this seemed to work pretty well.

Then of course, there was the upcoming date with Sirius. Mary was looking forward to the weekend and freaking out over it at the same time. How was she going to handle going out with a guy she adored now but had despised for so long? She did feel comfortable around him so it shouldn't be much of a problem, but on an official _date_? The only one who could really understand her was Lily, because her friend was going through the same thing with James.

One night, after hours of discussing what they were going to wear and how it would be to spend time with the guys alone, Mary and Lily considered calling the whole thing off. They were already halfway down the dormitory stairs when they paused, looked at each other and giggled before turning around and battling each other to get back up the stairs first, which resulted in many odd looks from the students in the Common Room, including the Marauders.

Brice was amused about their behaviour, but also felt a bit left out. After all, Lily and Mary would finally be going on the date of their dreams and she wasn't. Brice's attempts to show Remus that she liked him were (so far) failing miserably. Brice had considered giving up on him, but Lily advised her be a little more patient. She was sure Remus would come around eventually. But Remus wasn't at that point yet so instead of going with him, Brice went to Hogsmeade with Timothy Brown, a seventh year Ravenclaw and friend of Jonatahan. Brice asked Mary's permission to go out with him which made Mary laugh. Who was she to permit or forbid Brice from going out with one of Jonathans friends? Sirius on the other hand was less benevolent when he found out. "She's going with a mate of that lunatic?"

"What's wrong about that?"

Sirius shot Mary an incredulous look. "Nothing. Just the fact that his best friend likes to hit girls."

"Sirius, just because Jonathan is a jerk doesn't mean you should also condemn his friends," Mary said calmly. "Besides, you and I both know that Timothy couldn't snap a wand in two."

"I still think that the three of you should boycott all his friends out of principle."

"Well, it's not like she's marrying him, is she?"

Sirius shrugged. "I guess not." That put an end to their discussion, but over the next few days, Mary did notice that Sirius (and James) were shooting dark looks at the Ravenclaw table more than once.

On Saturday morning Mary woke up with a start because Lily had jumped right on top of her bed. Her friend looked nervous, but her auburn hair was shining brightly and her emerald eyes were twinkling. She grinned. "Today's _the_ day, Mare."

Mary, who was leaning back on her elbows and puled a hand through her long hair in an attempt to untangle it, grinned back. "Yep. This not your ordinary Saturday but a very special one: D-Day," she added in a dramatic voice.

"It's D-Saturday!" Lily giggled.

Brice, who was already out of bed and about to head off to the bathroom, frowned. "D-Saturday… What am I missing here?"

Mary laughed. "D-Saturday means that this a crucial day for us. Sort of like… If this goes wrong it can never be put right again."

Brice nodded. "You mean that D-Day stands for Date-Day?"

"Eh… Not quite," Mary said, shooting Lily a confused look.

"D-Day originates from World War II in the Muggle world. It's the day when the Americans successfully invaded Normandy, which was the first step to the defeat of Hilter," Lily explained as she swung her legs from Mary's bed. "D-Day was crucial in putting an end to World War II and our dates are also crucial, although probably less important to the rest of the world."

Brice stared at them. "Call me stupid, but I still don't see this war-dates connection."

"Talk to Peter. He can fill you in on about everything Muggle-related from a wizard's perspective. I'm sure he knows a lot about World War II as well."

After the girls had showered and dressed themselves warmly (it was freezing and a thick layer of snow had covered the Hogwarts grounds), they walked to the Great Hall where they had breakfast together. Mary tried to seduce Sirius in getting him talking about what they were going to do on their date by giving him a piece of richly buttered toast and jam, but he simply took the toast from her and said calmly: "You'll have to wait and see."

When breakfast was over, they headed down to the Entrance Hall. Peter and Remus went to Honeydukes and James and Lily (after she had made Mary promise they would stop by later) joined them in walking towards the village, although James did say he had his own plans when they had reached in Hogsmeade.

Mary and Sirius stayed behind with Brice who was waiting for Timothy. When he finally came down and greeted Brice by hugging her, Mary smiled at him. "Hi." S

Sirius on the other hand said nothing and was just shooting him a reproachful look. Timothy looked at him nervously and when Sirius's expression didn't change, Mary decided to step in and pulled him along with her while calling: "See ya Brice, bye Timothy!"

Sirius and Mary didn't speak for a while when they were crossing the Hogwarts grounds. It was a cold but bright day and the light of the distant sun was making the snow around them glitter and sparkle. When they were crossing the school gates, Sirius finally decided to open his mouth. "I just hope she knows what she's doing, that's all."

Mary smiled. "It's sweet of you to care, but really, Brice can take care of herself. Not that I think she has anything to fear from Timothy…"

Sirius snorted and kicked against a little pile of snow in front of him. Once again there was silence, but this time it was a peaceful one. Mary noticed she was feeling fully comfortable around Sirius and that neither of them felt the need to keep the conversation going. She focused on the rustling sound her boots made trapping the snow for a moment, before asking: "So what are we going to do?"

"It's better to show, not tell. We should turn left here."

"Well, there must be something you could give me," Mary said, starting to feel annoyed.

Sirius laughed and gave her a friendly push. "Oh, aren't we being impatient!"

Mary huffed and muttered: "I'm starting to thinkt that this is all a trick and that you have nothing to show me at all."

"Hate to bust your bubble," Sirius sniggered as he pointed ahead, "But we're here."

Mary followed the direction of his index finger and at first, she didn't see anything special. They seemed to be staring at a bunch of trees in a hilly meadow. However, when they came closer, she noticed that there was fruit hanging from them. In December! Mary looked at the trees in awe. "What are those?"

"Trees with ever-growing fruits. I don't know their exact names, but apparently they are very rare."

"They're extraordinary!" Mary said as she admiringly touched the bark of a pear tree.

Sirius climbed into one of the trees and gathered a bunch of apples. He let himself slide down the tree again, put some of the fruits in his bag and handed Mary one shining red apple, which she started to eat at once. It had a magnificent sweet taste.

Sirius smiled at her. "Any good?"

"Delicious," Mary mumbled with a full mouth.

They set off to walk to their next destination on their "Hogsmeade tour" and when Mary had finished eating the apple, she asked: "How did you know about this?'

"Lets just say I've seen a lot from Hogsmeade over the past years. And not just on weekends like this," he added vaguely.

Mary frowned but - considering the last time he informed her about the "adventures" of him and his friends - decided she simply didn't want to know. While they were walking down on ofe the main streets, Sirius told her that Remus wasn't ready to come clean to the other girls, which meant that Mary couldn't say anything for another while. She reluctantly agreed to do so, because she wasn't looking forward to keep lying to her friends.

Mary noticed that they were heading towards the Shrieking Shack. She looked at Sirius. "Hey, I've seen this before."

"I'm sure you have. But have you ever been inside?"

"Where? In the Shrieking Shack? Of course not."

"Okay then," Sirius said, stepping through a hole in the gate and holding it aside for Mary. "Ladies first," he grinned at her.

"But… That place is… it's not safe there."

"Really now? I've never noticed anything strange about it. You coming?"

"I'm _not_ going in there."

"Why not?"

"Because it's haunted."

Sirius laughed. "Oh yeah, it's definitely haunted. Once a month, that is."

Mary stared at him. "You mean, this is where Remus…"

"Hu-hum."

"Oh," Mary said and she walked over to the gate. Sirius held out a hand to pull her through and when his fingers made contact with hers, she shivered, feeling hundreds little shocks that were spreading from her hands to all over her body.

Sirius didn't seem to notice and guided her towards the Shrieking Shack. When they entered the deteriorated hut, Mary saw that it was a very dusty place with lots of damaged furniture. She crouched down near a broken arm chair and gently touched the ripped cover. "Remus?" she asked quietly.

Sirius nodded. "Ghosts could never do such a thing. It's a good thing the villagers are too afraid to set foot in here, or else… Anyway, that's exactly why Dumbledore is stimulating the rumors."

"So this is there where you hang out together at the full moon?"

"Yep, but this is only the second time I'm looking at it in human form."

"Are you going to show me now, then?" she asked teasingly.

Sirius didn't answer, but in a blink of the eye he had gone and there was a large bear-like black dog standing in front of Mary instead. She stared into the dogs grey-blue eyes. "This is incredible," she whispered in an admiring tone. Sirius the dog sat down in front of her and tilted his head to one side, begging her to stroke him. Mary laughed, flopped down on the floor next to him and started to tickle him gently on his head and behind his ears. Then in another flash of a second the dog vanished and Sirius had reappeared, so that Mary was now stroking him. She pulled her hand away, but he said softly: "Don't stop."

Mary looked at Sirius. She could feel the butterfliesstarting to jump up and down in her belly again, but this time she didn't care. She continued to stare into his beautiful eyes, knowing that this was the moment they had been waiting for; his face only inches away from hers, he was going to kiss her any second now…

BANG!

Sirius and Mary looked around in shock and watched how the kitchen door fell down to the floor with a loud crash. They stood up quickly and stared at the spot where the door had been only seconds ago. Dust was flying everywhere, making them cough.

"Things like that happen sometimes," Sirius said as he held up the sleeve of his robes to his mouth. "We'd better get out of here."

He carefully guided Mary out of the Shack and they walked back to the main street of Hogsmeade in silence. Mary couldn't have said something if she wanted; she was feeling too dazed. Did that really just happen? Sirius was about to kiss her - and more importantly she was going to kiss him back – and a door came crashing down, ruining the mood completely? She felt like screaming _Why?_ on the top of her lungs.

Mary was on the verge of frustrated tears when Sirius did something that told her that it was going to be alright. His fingers grazed against her fingers casually at first, as though by accident, and then slowly entwined themselves around her hand. His hand felt sure and firm and his thumb was rubbing hers softly, as though to say that their time would come. Mary looked up at Sirius and he smiled at her. "I could really use a butterbeer. How about you?"

Mary nodded and they entered a very crowded Three Broomsticks. When Sirius had gone to get them some Butterbeers, Mary tried to spot Lily and James in the crowd. She didn't have to look very long. Her friends were sharing a table at the back of the pub, completely oblivious to the rest of the world. They were kissing and from the looks of it, they had been doing that for quite some time. Mary was happy for them, but at the same time she felt a stab of jealousy. "At least _someone_ is getting it on," she thought surly.

Sirius joined her and as he passed her a Butterbeer, he followed her gaze and sniggered when he saw that James and Lily were making out. "Oooh nice. Come on, lets break up that private party of theirs," he said before pulling her along with him.

"Ooookay! Either you two get a room or act like the mature couple I know is hiding down there somewhere!" Sirius boomed when they had reached the table.

James broke away from a blushing Lily and grinned stupidly. "Sorry Padfoot, I think we've lost track of the hour and well…. Everything else."

Sirius sat down next to James and Mary joined Lily, who started talking with a flushed look on her face. "It's been so amazing. I don't understand why I've never gone out with James before. Oh Mare, He is so sweet and like, the best kisser ever!" She giggled. "Oh great, now I sound like some ditzy schoolgirl."

Mary smiled and sipped her drink. "Nah that's okay Lil, you're in love."

Lily looked at James and couldn't help but smile. "I guess I am. How about you and Sirius?"

Mary kicked against the table-leg in frustration. "Nothing."

"_Nothing_?" Lily asked with a surprised look on her face. "Look," she continued more carefully, "I know that it's difficult to give in to those feelings, but trust me: once you do, it's the best thing ever. And you can trust Sirius, you know you can."

"Oh, it's not that," Mary replied, looking annoyed. "We got disturbed by a crashing door in a stupid hut that was falling apart around us."

Lily didn't know what to say for a moment. "That's eh… What kind of hut?"

Mary, realizing that she was jeopardizing Remus's secret by telling Lily the full story on the Shrieking Shack, recovered quickly. "Just a hut. Look, I'm sure we'll be kissing before the end of the day, so don't worry. What else have you been doing besides snogging each other's faces off?"

Her friend laughed. "Actually, we've been brainstorming about the Christmas party. And since Dumbledore told us that it's not going to work to have it on Christmas Eve–"

"-We were thinking of making it a New Year's Eve Party instead," James joined in. "What do you guys think?"

"Sounds good to me. Mare?"

Mary, pleasantly surprised that Sirius was addressing her by her nickname, shrugged. "Yeah sure, I'll have to inform my parents that I'll be around at Christmas instead of New Year's, but other than that, sounds great."

"Brilliant," James grinned. "We already talked to Remus, Peter, Brice and 'whatshisname' (Sirius laughed and Mary and Lily scowled) and they also agreed."

"And we can count on your assistance throughout the night, right?" Lily asked.

"Of course." Sirius and Mary had spoken at the same time which made them all laugh. They left the Three Broomsticks together, shivering slightly in the sudden cold they were walking into.

"Lil, I think it's time to head back. You lot coming with us?" James asked as he was putting on his gloves.

"We've got one more spot to go to," Sirius replied, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

Lily beamed at Mary and said: "Just remember to get back in time. The school gates close at six tonight because of the curfew that has been installed after those Death Eater's attacks from last month."

James wrapped his arm around Lily and Mary smiled as she watched how they walked off, hugging together as James guided her through the main street.

"Ready to go?" Sirius asked.

Mary turned around and looked at his offered hand. As she accepted it, she asked: "What have you got planned this time?"

Sirius merely laughed and gently squeezed her hand. He instantly managed to turn her knees into a trembling mess by pulling her close to him and whispering: "Show Mare, not tell," softly into her ear.

End of Update

**A/N: Sorry for the short delay, but last night I got an unexpected visit from an old friend, so I didn't have time to post this installment. This is part one of the date, part two will follow shortly. Tonight hopefully! Let me know what you think ******** Mara **


	23. Snow Fever

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

Sirius and Mary set off in the same direction as James and Lily and crossed the quiet main street of Hogsmeade together. It was nearly five o'clock in the afternoon, the sun was setting and most students had already returned to Hogwarts. However, right when they passed Honeydukes, the door of the sweetshop opened and out walked a laughing Remus and Peter, their bags bulging with sweets. "Hello," Remus said as he walked towards them.

"Hi," Sirius replied, but Mary just gave him a little smile. She still didn't really know how to act, because she hadn't really had a conversation with him since she found out the truth.

Peter was rummaging around in his bag and after a moment he pulled out a bag of sinister-looking black sweets.

"What are those?" Sirius asked.

"Cockroach Crunchies," Peter replied in a deadly serious voice. He quickly opened the bag and put one of the crunchies in his mouth. "Hmmm, not bad."

Sirius lifted his eyebrows and Mary stared at Peter with an such an incredulous look on her face that it made Remus laugh. "Wormtail got bored with the common sweets and wanted to have a go at the unusual tastes section."

Peter sniggered as he swallowed his crunchie. "It's only a change of scenery. I've got more, though." He started looking again and eventually pulled out some red-colored lollypops. "I've always wondered how these would taste," putting one of them in his mouth.

"Like what?" Mary asked anxiously.

"Blood. And oddly enough, it's not that weird as you would think." He got another lollypop out of the bag. "Here, you should try it."

Mary, who had been staring at Peter, looked at Sirius – he rolled his eyes but was smiling - and back at Peter, who was now holding out a lollypop to her. "Thanks Pete, but I think I'll pass."

He shrugged. "Suit yourself."

"Well, I hope you enjoy yourself with those sweets, Wormtail. I guess we'll see you guys back at school. See ya, Moony," Sirius said, pulling Mary along by the hand.

"Bye," Remus replied and he and Peter continued to walk to school. Sirius and Mary on the other hand took the first street on their right next to Honeydukes. Mary was still trying to understand why someone would voluntarily eat cockroach crunchies and vampire lollypops. "Honestly, I know Peter likes food, but _blood_-flavored lollypops?"

Sirius chuckled. "When it comes to Wormtail's affection for food, nothing is surprising me anymore. Not since he told me that he thinks Wizard's Haggis is the best dish in the world."

"Isn't that the stomach of a kelpie filled with minced meat?"

"Yep."

"Ugh, that's just disgusting."

"I wouldn't know. I never tasted it, but if Peter says it's good… I'll stay away miles from it. Oh look, we're here."

Mary looked around the beautiful hilly meadow they were standing. It was a magnificent picture that could have come straight out of a book of a Winter fairytale. There was an iced pond in the middle that was surrounded by large trees. The branches of the trees were topped with a fresh layer of snow, looking like someone had put a rich amount of iced sugar on them. Not that there was any part of the meadow that didn't look familiar to Mary. "Hang on," she said as she began to understand what was going on. "I know this field."

Sirius, who was standing a few feet away from her with his hands in his pockets, nodded as he looked over the field. "Yeah, I thought you would."

"This is _our_ meadow. This is where I, Lily, Brice and sometimes Alison have been spending Hogsmeade weekends for years."

"I know that."

"How?" Mary asked suspiciously.

"Well, for one this field isn't that big, so anyone can see it from the main street and two, do you see that cot over there?" He pointed to a distant shed in a nearby field. "That's where _we_ used to hang out."

Mary shot him an astonished look. "You guys used to _spy_ on us?"

Sirius laughed. "If that's what you want to call it. It wasn't me to be honest. Most of the time James wanted to keep an eye on which guys were hanging out with Lily. Luckily she didn't used to go out with guys. Well, unless you count that Durmstrang student, what was his name again?"

"Dimitri Morvatsjov," Mary replied slowly while she sneakily pulled a bit of snow from a bush and started to form a snowball behind her back. "So you have been spying on us for years and you never had the decency to tell me?"

"I'm telling you now, aren't I and-" Sirius started teasingly but he got cut off by her snowball. It was a full hit that made his hair stand up in all directions.

Mary giggled. "Now you look just like James!"

"Why you little…" Sirius said only half-heartedly as he tried to shake the snow out of his hair. His response was quick nevertheless. He was holding a snowball in his hands in less than a second and chucked it right at Mary, who shrieked happily and ducked before she ran away. Snowballs were hitting her left and centre as she struggled hard to reach the other side of field and find some shelter behind the trees.

But Mary never made it that far because before she knew what happened, Sirius was tackling her from behind. She fell to the ground on her stomach, firmly being held by Sirius, but she refused to give up that easily. She managed to grab a handful of snow, turned around on her back and threw it in his face, who was laying right on top of her. They were both laughing when he managed to pin her hands on the floor next to her face and shook his head in another feeble attempt to get the snow out of his eyes.

Both of them were panting slightly because of playing around in the snow. Mary's cheeks were red of the cold and seemed to be sprinkled with tiny snowflakes. Sirius, who had stopped laughing, slowly raised his hand and gently wiped one of them off her cheekbone. They looked in each other's eyes for a brief moment and this time, there was no hesitation. Sirius kissed her and although it was a passionate one, the kiss was also tender and loving.

It was by far the best kiss Mary ever had experienced, probably because she'd never been in love with someone as much as she was with Sirius. She had temporarily forgotten who or where she was, even that they were laying on top of each other in the ice cold snow. For all she knew, several feet of the whiteness that was surrounding them was melting fast because of the heat they were spreading by making out the way that they did. All that mattered was continuing this amazing kiss, which – if it was up to Mary – would never stop.

Although it lasted very long indeed, even the most wonderful kisses must come to an end eventually. When Sirius finally pulled back, Mary didn't open her eyes immediately. She just lay back, relaxing for a moment, and only opened her eyes when Sirius was gently wiping a lock of hair from her face. She looked up and noticed that the low sun was illuminating those golden streaks in his grey eyes and made them even more enchanting. She slowly realized how much had changed between them. This kiss had been in the air for so long, but now that it had finally happened, the atmosphere between them was definitely different. "Hi," she whispered.

He smiled and kissed the tip of her nose. "I've wanted to do that for over two years."

She giggled. "What, kissing my nose?"

"Yeah that, and this." He softly kissed her on the forehead, her cheeks and worked his way down by ending somewhere down her neck.

Mary responded by leaning on her elbows and kissing Sirius's neck, breathing in deeply as she did so, so that she could enjoy that musky smell she had come to love so much. Finally she did what used to drive Jonathan positively insane; she kissed Sirius gently on his lips, worked her way to one of his ears, sucked on his earlobe and ended by blowing against it. Apparently this tactic worked on every guy, because he growled happily, kissed her again (more passionately this time) and then finally pulled her back up.

When Mary stood up, she noticed her legs were all wobbly again and she literally had to lean on Sirius to remain on her feet. "Are you okay?" he asked her as he supported her a bit.

"Yeah, fine," Mary replied softly and they looked at each other. This time it was Mary who started another kiss that lasted several minutes and when they finally broke apart, Sirius looked around and tried to check the time on the clock in the shop window of Honeydukes. When he noticed the time, he stiffened slightly. "Crap."

"What is it?" Mary asked while she was straightening Sirius's scarf.

"It's 5.55 PM," Sirius said slowly.

_"What?"_

"Come on, hurry!" Sirius grabbed Mary's hand and started to make a run for it. They sprinted to the school gates, but by the time they had reached them, the gates were already closed. "Oh no," Mary said, panicking slightly. "What are we going to do?"

Sirius didn't reply and merely looked from the gates to Hogsmeade and back.

"Sirius!" Mary called. "Now what? There's no way of getting back into school without being noticed by anyone."

A grin was slowly creeping onto his face. "Not necessarily."

"What do you mean?"

"It's gonna be fine," Sirius said. "Just apparate to the Shrieking Shack before anyone catches us here."

She stared at him. "Trust me," Sirius said grabbing her hand. "Disapparate and I'll see you there, OK?" He gave her a kiss and disapparated with a pop.

Mary, feeling that she didn't have a choice, visualised the old cottage as her destination and turned on the spot. When the unpleasant spinning and feeling of compression had faded away, she noticed that she was standing in the Shrieking Shack. Sirius was examining the very kitchen door that had interrupted their previous "rendez-vous" earlier that day.

"What are you doing?"

"Checking if this door can be fixed. By the looks of it, Moony's last outburst has been the final blow. Not that it matters much… However, now you're here, I'm going to show you something else. But again… Keep it quiet."

Mary nodded, half-afraid, half-curious about what was coming next. Sirius walked into the hallway and she followed him. Right before the stairway there was a large hatch in the floor. Sirius opened it and jumped inside, leaving Mary behind in the eerie Shrieking Shack. She was just considering to jump in there after him when she heard Sirius saying: "So, how long exactly were you planning to keep me waiting?"

Mary peered into the dark hole of the hatch. "Where are you? I cannot see you."

"I'm right here. Just jump. I won't let you fall, promise."

Mary carefully let herself slide into the hatch. When she let go of the ledge she felt Sirius putting his arms around her waist. He lowered her steadily to the ground, but unlike that time on the train, she didn't stiffen. Instead, as soon as her feet touched the ground she turned around and kissed him again. "Thanks", she said breathlessly when they broke apart after another while. "Care to tell me where we are?"

"Naturally," Sirius replied as he pulled out his wand and muttered _Lumos_. When Mary had also illuminated the tip of her wand, he reached for her hand and started walking. "Just keep in mind that parts of this passage are narrow, so be sure to watch your head."

While they were slowly walking through the dark and bumpy passage, Sirius explained what its purpose was. "So every time we want to visit Moony, we'll go this way."

"Where does the passage lead to?"

"Ehh… Good question. You know that tree with moving branches on the school grounds?"

Mary stopped walking. "The Whomping Willow?"

"Well yeah, this gate is supposed to be safely guarded, shouldn't it?"

"I guess so, But how can we get past that tree without getting hurt?"

"By putting this stick-" He raised a large stick he had picked up near the entrance of the passage. "-Against the tree trunk."

He climbed out of the passage first and after a few seconds, the sound of sweeping branches stopped abruptly. Mary climbed through the hole and Sirius pulled her out of the passage. "Go and wait over there as I remove the stick."

Not feeling like getting beat up by a bad-tempered willow, Mary quickly ran to a safer spot up the hill. Sirius easily removed the stick – he obviously had done it a hundred times before – and joined her to run up the stairs of the castle together. Lucky for them, they didn't run in to anyone on their way back to the Common Room except Peeves (and they managed to avoid a confrontation by taking a detour). When they were finally crawling through the portrait hole, they walked straight into a stressed-looking James. "There you are! I was about to raise the alarm. Why didn't you tell us what time you would be back?"

Sirius snorted. "I didn't know I had to, _dad_."

James glared at them, but couldn't keep a straight face either. "So how _did_ you get back?" he asked, sniggering.

Sirius told James about their detour through the passage, but Mary's eyes had found Lily and Brice who were sitting in their usual spots near the fireplace. Lily was smiling and Mary didn't want to wait a minute longer to fill in her friends. She squeezed Sirius's hand, smiled at him and walked to her friends, who grinned when they spotted her.

"So..." Lily said with a quasi-stern look. "Where have you been all this time?"

Mary smiled. "We just lost track of the hour. I'm sorry Lil, I should have told you."

Lily burst out laughing and gave Mary a friendly punch. "Nah that's okay, you're in love!"

Mary looked over her shoulder and glanced at Sirius. She smiled as she saw him standing near the window with James. She looked back at Lily and realized the grin couldn't be any wider. "Yeah, I guess I am."

End of Update


	24. Lucky in Love

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

The first weeks felt like one big ecstatic dream for Sirius. He and Mary spent as much time together as possible, but that was a lot easier than done because of their school work, assisting in planning the New Years Eve party and training for the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff (which Gryffindor won, but only just). Still, they ejoyed every minute they could spend together to the fullest. Sirius even persuaded Mary to join him in a broom cupboard, something she had been resenting for years. However, after having accompanied him there one night, she had to admit that hoooking up there was actually a lot of fun.

And every minute he wasn't _with_ Mary, Sirius couldn't stop thinking about her. He never expected to fall in love as much as this. He had always imagined something like that could only happen to James and his everlasting obsession with Lily, but now the two of them were acting like (as Peter liked to call it) two fools in love as well.

Sirius found it very difficult to pay attention to anything non Mary-related. Right now for example, he was in Transfiguration and supposed to listen to McGonagall's lesson on transfiguring a chair into a cow and back. But he was sitting next to Mary and wasn't hearing a single word from what McGonagall was saying. Instead, he had been focusing on wrapping one lock of her soft hair around his finger for the last few minutes.

The corners of Mary's mouth - who was desperately trying to pay attention to McGonagall and stared at their Professor in a deadly focused manner - slowly began to rise. She giggled softly as she tried to "free" her hair from Sirius's hand. "Stop that," she whispered.

"Why? I like the feeling of my hand being carefully wrapped in your hair. It's so soft and warm. Come to think of it, as long as you're around, I'll never need gloves again," Sirius whispered back.

Mary laughed. "Well, unlike some people I know-" she shot Sirius a daring look "-I still have to learn things about Transfiguration. So…"

"Mr. Black!" McGonagall's voice suddenly cut through the classroom. "Could you desist on playing around with Miss Woods' hair? And if I hear one more sound from either of you, you will be spending this week's nights separately in my office instead of together in the Common Room. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes, Professor," Mary said, looking down at the table as her cheeks turned crimson. 

Sirius on the other hand, who was having trouble to keep a straight face, merely nodded and once McGonagall had turned around, he leaned over to Mary and whispered: "That's actually the one threat McGonagall could throw at me. Spending every night of this week without you, I don't think I'd survive."

Mary couldn't help but grin foolishly when she looked at him. "Me neither."

To Sirius, things just couldn't possibly get any better. There was only one major "but". Remus still refused to tell Lily and Brice his secret and Sirius noticed that this matter of secret keeping was affecting Mary. He knew that she hated lying to her friends and at the moment, whenever the subject on Remus's mysterious illness came up, Mary was forced to either lie or flee the room. And she wasn't happy about that at all. In fact, she had barely said a word to Remus since she found out. Remus suspected Mary of being afraid of werewolves after all, but Sirius knew better than that.

The fact remained that Remus had to talk to her about it before everything would fall apart. Something told him that Mary wasn't able to keep lying to Lily and Brice forever and he and James believed that they needed to hear the truth from Remus and not from her.

Sirius decided to talk to Mary on one particular night in the Common Room while James, Lily and the others were talking about the New Year's Eve party and he and Mary were stretched out on the couch near the fire. She was reading a book on the healing qualities of the asfaloth plant. Her head was resting on his chest and he was playing with her hair. After having checked that Remus was still engaged in a discussion with Lily on which kind of faerie lights were best for outdoor use, he softly nudged Mary. "Hmm?" she said, looking up from her book.

"I was wondering," he said as he gently caressed her cheek. Already knowing the answer, he asked: "How are you holding up with keeping Remus's secret?"

Mary shrugged. "It's awful," she said after another pause. "Lily and Brice definitely know that something's up. Seriously, I'm doing everything I can but at this rate… I don't know how much longer I can keep this up."

"I know."

"I just don't understand why Remus doesn't want to tell them," Mary said as she tiredly rubbed her forehead.

"Well…" Sirius said doubtfully. "It's not like everything between you and Remus has been great ever since you found out."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mary snapped, sitting up straight.

"Shhh, keep your voice down!" Sirius hissed quietly. "It's just… You have hardly talked to him since you know about his… Furry little problem."

"That's only because I'm trying to protect him, you know that!"

"You know and I know, but Remus doesn't."

"Well, tell him then. Explain why I'm acting the way I am."

"I tried, but he doesn't believe me. Mare, you should talk to him. And soon, before everything comes out the wrong way."

Mary bit her lip for a moment. "Alright, I'll talk to him," she said eventually.

"Great," Sirius said before bending forward to kiss her. "Now, can we get back to the way we were and relax? My hands are getting all cold again…" he added teasingly.

Mary laughed, pushed Sirius back onto the couch and nestled against his chest. However, she did not pick her book again, but stared absentmindedly into the fire as she intertwined her fingers with his.

However, she stayed true to her word and talked to Remus the very next day, who now understood why she was acting so aloof, but he explained that he still wasn't ready to tell the others the truth. He managed to persuade a reluctant Mary to keep his secret quiet until after the party and she promised she was going to try, although she did warn him that Brice and Lily weren't retared and would figure things out themselves soon enough.

It was the week before Christmas and all the fourth year students (and older) were getting more excited about the upcoming New Year's Eve party every day. It was rumored to be the most spectacular party Hogwarts had seen in years. Students in the corridors were speculating about the possibility of James being able to convince Dumbledore on letting Hagrid catch a bunch of dragons and putting them next to the school gates. Of course this wasn't exactly true, but James neither admitted nor denied the rumors. He thought it would add some mystery to the party.

Nevertheless, he and Lily were almost constantly busy to organize the party. Even at dinner they were rustling with an ever-growing pile of notes, scribbling down more and more notes on the parchment. At the moment Lily was considering to put someone at the Entrance Hall who would have to keep track of the guest list. "What do you guys think? Wouldn't that add some Hollywood glamour to the party?"

"Yeah, I guess so, but who-" Mary started before getting cut off by James.

"Holywodd? What in the name of Merlin is that?"

"_Hollywood_ James, and it's this place in America where they make movies and many famous actors and actresses reside," Lily attempted to explain.

"Movies…" James said, looking confused.

"It's comparable to wizarding photographs but then with sound and…" she broke off at his blank stare. "Mare, help me out here," she groaned pleadingly.

Mary chuckled as she was finishing her soup. "Forget it, I'm not even going to try."

Lily sighed. "Never mind. But James, wouldn't it be cool to have someone at the door who keeps track of the guest list?"

James frowned. "I guess so. But who were you going to put out there? A Professor?"

"No, a student."

"And who did you have in mind? All of us already have tasks."

"Good point," Lily mumbled and she started to consult her notes. "Hmmm, this could be a real problem."

"What about Alison?" Peter suggested.

They all looked at Peter in surprise, who blushed. "I… I mean," he stuttered "I know she's not a Gryffindor, but she does hang out with us a lot and… And isn't a doorwoman supposed to be a bit bitchy?"

Remus snorted. "Alison sounds perfect for the job."

Lily chewed on the back of her quill, considering the possibility. "Yes," she said after another pause. "That could definitely work. I know that she's also staying at Hogwarts this Christmas, so I could ask her then."

Because they were determined to organize the party in the best possible way, James and Lily had decided to spend Christmas at Hogwarts. This meant that Sirius had no choice but to also remain at school. After all, going to his parents was not an option and now that James wasn't going home, he couldn't go the Potters residence either. He would have liked to spend some time away from Hogwarts, but having already accepted his "fate", he was surprised when Mary wanted to talk to him alone after dinner. She pulled him behind a pillar of the Entrance Hall and shot him a nervous look.

"What is this about?" he asking laughing as he slid his arms around her waist.

"Eh well, I've been thinking about something," she said hesitantly. "I know you were planning to spend Christmas with the Potters, but now that James and Lily are staying here, I was wondering… Well… You could come with me, if you like."

Sirius frowned at her, momentarily too gobsmacked to speak. Mary - who was looking at him - drew the wrong conclusion, stared at the floor and said quietly: "I should have known… It's too soon. Of course you wouldn't want to…"

It was almost impossible to describe what Mary's words meant to Sirius or the odd and head-spinning feeling that was running through his veins at this very moment. Was it love? He had never felt it before, but reckoned that if this was how true love felt, he never wanted to go on without it anymore. He slowly lifted Mary's chin so that she was looking straight into his eyes. "That sounds like the best idea I heard in days," he said softly.

She kissed him in reply and when they broke apart, her eyes were twinkling and she smiled. "Really? You want to meet my parents?"

Sirius nodded and gave her a another kiss before saying: "I would love to."

"Alright, then I should inform my mother that I'm bringing someone home with me. They're as Muggle as you can get, so please don't mind their ignorance about our world."

Sirius shrugged. "Well, I've never been to an all Muggle-family before. It should be fascinating." He snorted. "Peter is going to be so jealous!"

They both laughed and walked to the Common Room together, their hands linked all the way. The next few days went by without notable events. Sirius and James were still trying to talk some sense into Remus, who finally gave in and admitted that it was better to tell Lily and Brice himself than they would hear it from someone else, or found out about it on their own, like Mary had done. He promised to tell the other girls everything after the holidays.

Sirius honestly thought that – even though he had noticed that Brice was becoming more and more suspicious about Mary's behaviour – this was going to work and that they were able to postpone this "dramatic encounter" until the new year. How very wrong he was…

On Wednesday night Sirius and the other guys were sitting in the Common Room. The girls had already gone to bed, but they remained downstairs for another while because they wanted to finish their game of Exploding Snap. They were the only ones left downstairs and had the entire place to themselves. James was about to carefully place another card on top of their huge house made of cards when they heard someone run down the stairs of the girls dormitories. It was Mary, wearing nothing more than a tiny purple nightgown and a pair of slippers, but she didn't seem to be aware of that.

She walked straight to the table where the guys were sitting, her long brown hair bouncing with every determined step she took. Sirius - once again flabbergasted by her stunning appearance - dropped one of the cards out of his hand and it fell straight on top of their house of cards, making it explode with a loud bang. James - who got the full blow of the explosion - cursed and chucked one of the smoking cards at Sirius's head, but he didn't notice because he was still too busy gazing at his beautiful girlfriend. Neither did Mary, but she wasn't looking at Sirius. Instead, she glared at Remus. "No more," she told him angrily.

Remus shot her a concerned look. "Eh Mary, what…"

She crossed her arms and grinded her teeth. "Listen Remus; I tried, I really did, but I cannot take this anymore. It's like a bloody cross-examination upstairs! I'm telling you, it's not going to take Brice another day to figure it out. So if I were you, I'd tell her as soon as possible."

"Tell me what?" a suspicious voice came from the bottom of the stairs. They all turned around in shock. Brice and Lily were standing next to each other, shooting them a suspicous look. Remus paled and in the tense silence that followed, not a single sound could be heard.

It was Brice who cleared her throat in the end. "Remus?" she asked quietly. When he didn't respond but continued to stare at the floor instead with an anxious expression on his troubled face, she repeated more urgently: "Tell me what, Remus?"

End of Update

**A/N: Minor cliffie, sorry about that. I think I can put up the next chapter tomorrow or else on Monday. Hope you liked it. As always, reviews are well appreciated ******** Mara **


	25. Werewolves & Animagi

**A/N: Th****anks for all the reviews. I really enjoy getting feedback from readers, as it gives me an idea who's reading the story, you know ;)**

**Now I'm not ****sure how I'm supposed to get back to comments on this site. But just to answer a few comments/questions:**

**The spelling/grammar mistakes: I'm editing out as many as I can, but this is still the beginning of the story. My English wasn't that all good when I was writing this part (I'm Dutch). However, as the story moves along, my writing and use of grammar will get a lot better :) **

**James's birthday: I had completely forgotten about that! You see, I wrote this fic long before the release of Deathly Hallows (you can imagine my excitement when I found that one of Lily's best friends from Hogwarts was a Mary (MacDonald, but pffffsht details!). I should have edited this, but I forgot… Thanks for pointing it out, though:)**

**And here's the next update. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

Something was telling Mary that this wasn't the most clever move she could have made. Storming out of the dormitory while having a heated discussion with Brice and Lily about Remus to head down the stairs and yell at him so that they were hearing every word she said didn't correspond that well to her promise to keep her mouth shut about the secret.

There had not been such a tense moment among the Marauders and the girls since their fifth year when James wrote Lily a poem and decidied to recite it in front of the entire Gryffindor house (in case you were wondering, Lily was _not_ amused). The only sound that could be heard was Mary shuffling her feet on the tapestry, but she stopped doing that when she noticed how much noise she was making.

Brice and Lily had walked over to the rest of them. Mary didn't dare to look at them and Remus hadn't said a word either, but was staring down at the floor intently. However, this did not discourage Brice to question him about what she had heard. On the contrary, his silence seemed to confirm her suspicions, whatever those may be.

"What's going on here, Remus?" Brice demanded.

Remus finally looked up. He shot Mary an angry look before turning to Brice. "Nothing, really. Mary and I were just having an argument about something."

Brice crossed her arms and frowned. "An argument. Right… And what have I got to do with that?"

"Nothing."

"Really? Hmmm… That's interesting. See, I don't recall anything being wrong with my ears and I clearly heard Mary say that _I_ would find out soon enough."

Remus scratched his head. "Eh well… I'm not sure…"

"Brice, please calm down," Lily said soothingly. "Let's all go to our dormitories, have a glass of water, go to sleep and talk about it tomorrow."

"No Lily," Brice said while she shot Mary an angry look. "I think I already know what's going on here. I can hardly believe it and it's me making me sick, but…" she looked at Sirius, "I'm sorry, but there's something going on between Remus and Mary."

The following silence was even more deafening than the last one. Mary stared at her friend in horror. She desperately wanted to explain that her friend had this all wrong, but her brain seemed to have been disconnected from her mouth. She just stood there, gazing at Brice with her mouth hanging open.

"What? No, It's not… not like that," Remus - looking just as stunned as Mary – managed to splutter eventually.

Thankfully Sirius hadn't lost his tongue. He cleared his throat and said in a calm voice: "Brice love, I can _assure_ you that's not the case."

"How can you be sure? D'you think I'm a retard?"

"Because," Sirius replied, "I do know what this is about."

Brice narrowed her eyes at him. "Really Brice," Mary, who had finally regained her voice. "There's nothing going on between us."

"So what _is_ this about, then?" Brice asked, shooting her a confused look.

"That's what I would like to know," Lily said, walking over to James and siting down on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek before looking at Remus through a curtain of long auburn hair that was hanging in front of his eyes. "Just tell them, Moony. There's no point in postponing it now." 

Remus stared at James for another moment and nodded. "Alright..." he started hesitantly. "There's a good reason for my monthly absence. And… Well, there's no easy way of saying this, so I'll just… I'm… Brice, Lily," he gulped and stared at the floor again before finally finishing his sentence: "I'm a werewolf."

And for the third time that night there was silence. Lily was staring at Remus with a compassionate look in her emerald eyes and Mary instantly knew she was feeling as sorry for him as she had been when she heard the truth for the first time. When Mary looked at Brice – who was blinking feverishly in an attempt to comprehend what Remus just said – she felt Sirius's hand reaching for hers and pulling her towards him. Like Lily had done with James, she crawled sideways onto his lap and buried her face in his neck.

Lily was the first one to break the silence. "Look Remus, this doesn't change anything as far as I'm concerned and truthfully, I'm not that surprised. In fact, I think I subconsciously have known it for years. I always knew that there was something special about you. This sure explains a lot. And if you add Mary's ridiculous comments about the full moon from the last few days…"

"How can you say something stupid about the full moon?" Peter asked, looking interested.

"Oh, like saying that some people are vampires-in-reverse; allergic to full moonlight. Apparently they need to avoid it at all times," Lily said as she winked at Peter.

James and Peter burst out laughing and Sirius, who had wrapped his arms around Mary's waist and was playing with a loose string on the hem of her nightdress, grinned at her. "You actually said that?" he snorted.

"I panicked, okay!" Mary groaned, blushing as she clapped her hands to her face. Sirius continued to chuckle appreciatively as he leaned his chin on her shoulder.

In the meantime Remus, who was obviously relieved by Lily's sensible reaction, had finally dared to look up at Brice. She hadn't said anything at all so far, but was sitting down on an arm chair and stared out of the window.

"Eh Brice, How eh..." Remus started hesitantly.

Brice looked at him with an unreadable expression in her eyes. "Oh," she said slowly. "Right. Eh... I don't really mind, at least I think I don't. Of course I have to make sure not to mention any of this to my mum or she'll be alerting the school board faster than you could say non-explodable luminous balloons."

Sirius opened his mouth to speak up angrily, but this time James beat him to it. "Oh, so your mum is one of those purebloods who has that ridiculous prejudice of werewolves?!" he snapped.

Lily exchanged a glance with Mary before she grabbing his hand and tried to placate the start of a heated discussion. "James, please..."

James, who was calming down almost instantly but still looked like he had trouble believing his ears, continued to stare at Brice while he muttered: "Well it's just, because… Ridiculous fear…"

Brice shrugged. "It's not like I'm judging werewolves, am I? Least of all Remus. But my aunt - my mum's sister - got attacked by a particularly nasty werewolf called Fenrir Greyback five years ago and she died. So please don't judge my mother on having such a low opinion about werewolves."

"I'm really sorry to hear that," Remus said genuinely.

Brice gave him a wry smile. "That's quite alright. Look Remus, I'm not going to avoid you now that I know about your… other form… thing... eh-"

"-Furry little problem," James cut in, which made them all laugh.

"Yeah," Brice smiled. "Your _furry little problem_. Anyway, we're cool, just so you know."

Remus smiled back. "Thanks, you have no idea how much that means to me."

"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to bed," Lily said as she stifled a yawn and got up.

"Hang on," Mary said, looking at Sirius. "Aren't you forgetting to tell them about… That other thing you guys have been doing?"

Sirius looked at her for a moment. "Yeah, I suppose you've got a point. Brice, Lily, you might want to sit down again. There's something else. We've known about Moony's alternate form since our second year and wanted to do something about his monthly loneliness. So in our fifth year we eh…" he shot a doubtful look at James who nodded, encouraging his friend to continue: "We learned how to become Animagi."

This time it was Lily and Brice who stared at the guys with their eyes and mouths wide open. The guys looked at them, anxiously waiting for their response, but apparently the news was still sinking in. Mary was also looking at her friends and the dumbstruck expression on their faces almost made laugh aloud. Had she also pulled such a face when Sirius first told her about this? She snorted. "You should see the looks on your faces. If only I had a camera…"

Lily blinked and looked at her. "You knew about this?"

"Yeah, Sirius told me that night of James's birthday party."

"Right," Lily said, pulling a hand through her hair. She looked at James. "You do realise that this Animagi stuff is totally illegal?"

"Of course," James said, grinning proudly, but his smile faded when he saw the disapproving look on his girlfriend's face. "Lil," he said soothingly as he reached for her hand. "We're not hurting anyone with this. All we're doing is accompanying a rather hairy friend."

"Hey, I'm not _that_ hairy!" Remus said indignantly as he faked a wounded look on his face. At least Mary thought he was faking it, because - now that the secret was out - he actually looked like a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

Brice smiled. "So Peter, what kind of animal are you?"

"A rat."

It was obvious that Brice didn't exactly know how to respond to this. "That's eh… Not a very large animal."

Peter shrugged. "I know my Animagus form isn't as impressive as James or Sirius's, but it also has its advantages."

"I'm sure it has," Lily said kindly. "What about you, James?"

"What do you think?" he asked, giving her a teasing wink.

She arched an eyebrow. "How should I know?"

"Just guess."

"Fine. An elephant?"

"No."

"A bull? Snake? Hippo? Donkey?"

"A _donkey_?" James snorted. "Nice try, but unfortunately none of them are correct. I'm a stag, Lil."

She stared at him. "A stag?"

"Antlers and all."

After a moment of contemplating this impressive piece of information, she smiled with twinkling eyes and shot him an admiring look. "Wow… You must show me that some time." She looked at Sirius. "And what about you?"

"I'm a dog," Sirius said.

"Of course…" Brice said thoughtfully. "That actually makes a lot of sense. You have been named after the dog star and all."

Sirius shot her a surprised look. "You know which star is the dog star?"

"Yeah, it's near Orion's Belt. I wrote an Astronomy essay on it last month."

"That's great. You know, I've never known which star it is, so could you show me some time?"

"Sure," Brice said. "But that's only possible on a clear night and right now my head is positively swirling because of all these revelations, so I need to get some sleep. How about you?"

Lily and Mary nodded, kissed their boyfriends goodnight and ascended the stairs to the dormitory together. They didn't talk much when they got there. They brushed their teeth in silence, each of them drowned in their own thoughts. And when they climbed into their beds, they fell asleep after a few minutes. The last two days before the holidays flew by and before Mary knew, it was Saturday morning. Time to go home. She, Sirius, Remus, Brice and Peter would be taking the Hogwarts Express to King's Cross Station in a few hours and spend Christmas with their families. James and Lily were staying behind, but they didn't really seem to care about that, considering they were now fully concentrating on making the final arrangements for the party. Brice and Mary had packed their trunks and dragged them down the stairs and along the corridors. They were just putting them against the wall near the Entrance Door and were considering what to have for breakfast when Mary noticed that someone was standing behind her.

"Hello Cassidy," she said, shooting her a neutral smile, which the girl did not return.

Instead, she was pursing her lips. "You think you've got it all, don't you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Sirius! Honestly, you're obviously just his flavour of the month, so you better enjoy it while it lasts."

Mary tried to hide her smile and look serious when she arched an eyebrow. "Right… Because that's what you did, isn't it?"

Cassidy put her hands on her lips and narrowed her eyes. "Dear Godric... You think you've actually tamed him, don't you?"

Mary laughed. "Oh, I'm sure that Sirius wouldn't allow himself to get tamed by anyone. But if you're interested in finding out if we're happy then yeah, we are."

"He's not in love with you if that's what you're thinking," she sneered. "I cannot believe how naïve you are."

Mary rolled her eyes. "And I cannot believe how dense you are. He doesn't want you anymore, he's with me now. Accept that, get over it and move on. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a breakfast to go to. Merry Christmas," she finished coolly before she walked off to the Great Hall with Brice. They didn't look back at Cassidy, not even when she yelled: "If _I_ cannot be with him, then no one will!"

When Brice heard this, she shook her head laughing. "Honestly… Can you believe that girl? Really, if there's one I thing I'm sure of, it's that you've got nothing to fear from Cassidy Donaldson."

Mary nodded and continued to walk the Gryffindor table with her head held up high, but didn't say anything. Although she really wanted to believe Brice, she was suddenly having a nasty sense of foreboding about Cassidy. Something told her that this girl might not be that harmless as she seemed.

End of Update


	26. Meeting the Parents

**Chapter ****Twenty-Six**

After breakfast they all got in the horseless carriages which would bring them to the Hogwarts Express. James and Lily decided to accompany them, because they wanted to say goodbye to their friends on the platform. When the others had put their trunks in the luggage compartment of the train, they stepped back onto the platform. "Well," Brice said. "I guess we'll see you guys after Christmas."

"Yeah," Lily said as she turned around to hug Mary. "Give my best to your parents."

Mary nodded. "I will. Good luck with the party arrangements and everything."

"Oh, we'll be fine," James said, looking more confident than ever. "Now if only Hagrid would hurry up with those dragons. I told him yesterday that two domestic Welsh Greens just aren't good enough…" he continued in a much louder voice so that some passing second year-students heard him and started to whisper frantically.

Lily laughed and rolled her eyes. "_Please_, not those dragons again…"

"But things are going the way they should be, right?" Brice asked as she was putting her hair up in a loose bun.

"Well, I asked Alison if she wanted to be the doorwoman yesterday and she said she had to think about it, but I truly hope that-"

"-She'll do it," Peter interrupted. 

Lily looked at him in surprise. "At least..." Peter continued in a more hesitant voice. "That's what she told me."

"And since when are you hanging out with Alison on a regular basis, Wormtail?" Sirius said with a note of amusement in his voice.

"I'm not!" Peter said, reddening fast. "No really," he repeated when Sirius was making a derisive sound. "I just ran into her in a corridor."

"Alright, if you say so," Sirius said. He was slightly narrowing his eyes at Peter but looked amused all the same, before he said: "We'd better hop onto the train or it will leave without us."

They all hugged James and Lily, wished them an early Merry Christmas and promised they'd all be back get back to Hogwarts on December 30th. Then they got onto the train. Sirius and Mary were the last ones in line, and when she stepped up, he placed his hands steadily on her hips and whispered teasingly in her ear: "This time, please try to not lose balance just because you desperately want to feel my arms around you…"

Mary – who had managed to get on the train on her own - laughed, turned around and blocked the entrance. "You know, I am _this_ close as to leaving you behind."

Sirius cocked his head sideways and adapted his notorious and completely adorable pleading puppy-look. "No, you're not…"

Mary rolled her eyes and, hearing the whistle that announced the departure of the Express, quickly pulled him on the train. When the carriage door got slammed shut, she put her arms around his neck and sighed: "How I hate it that you're always right."

He smirked and leaned in to kiss her. When they broke apart, he said haughtily: "You simply cannot live without me, just admit it."

"Hardly," Mary answered cheekily. "It's just that my mum bought all this fancy food and she'll kill me if she has to throw away any of that because you're not coming with me after all."

Sirius burst out laughing and they walked to the compartment of the others. The journey to King's Cross Station flew by peacefully. There was only one awkward moment near the end of the journey when Timothy, the Ravenclaw student who took Brice to Hogsmeade, stopped by to give her an early Christmas present. Sirius, who was sitting next to the door, pretty much glared the shy boy out of their compartment. Remus and Peter weren't very hospitable either and simply pretended that Timothy did not exist, so Brice had to step outside to talk to him in a less hostile environment.

When Brice returned, she was holding a small package in her hand. She sat down between Remus and Peter, put down Timothy's gift on her lap and stared at it. 

"Aren't you going to open it?" Peter asked curiously.

Brice didn't reply and shot a confused look at Mary. "I didn't get him anything. Should I have gotten him a present too?"

Sirius was about to give a cheeky answer, but Mary elbowed him and said calmly: "It's not like you agreed to get each other presents, right? I don't think he expects you to give him something in return."

Brice picked up the present, held it next to her ear and shook it thoughtfully. Then she placed it back on her lap, still looking indecisive. "You know", Remus suggested as he pulled out his wand and pointed it straight at the present. "I could blow the whole thing to smithereens." Mary noticed that Remus certainly looked like he wanted to.

Brice, also noticing this, frowned at him. "Thanks, but no, that would be rude. At the very least," she added, putting the present in her bag. "I'll open it later."

"Suit yourself," Remus said, failing to hide a scowl.

In the brief tense silence that followed, Brice exchanged a glance with Mary before she seemed about to say something about his odd behaviour when the train started to slow down. "Oh look, we're almost at King's Cross," Peter said, clearly feeling relieved.

When the guys had grabbed their bags and left the compartment, Brice leaned over to Mary and whispered: "What was that all about?"

Mary shrugged. "It looks like Remus didn't like that you got a present from another guy. You can draw your own conclusions from that."

Brice shot a look at the deserted corridor and lifted her eyebrows in surprise. "You mean… He could be having feelings for… Noooo, could he?" she asked a little too eagerly.

Mary grinned as she swung her bag over her shoulder. "It sure looks like it."

The two of them – Brice looking like she was floating a few feet above the ground - walked to the end of the train, jumped onto the platform and walked to the others who were waiting near the pillar that would take them to the other end of platform 9 3/4. After they had returned to the Muggle side of London, they hugged each other goodbye before all walking into opposite directions.

Sirius grabbed Mary's hand and pulled her close to him. "So," he asked as he put his arms around her. "Now what?"

"Now, we just have to look for my… Dad!" Mary suddenly exclaimed happily.

She broke free from Sirius's embrace and ran to a tall man who was standing near a newspaper stand on the platform and hugged him. Sirius noticed that Mary's father was a charismatic man in his early forties with shades of grey in his brown hair. As he was walking towards them and Mr. Woods looked up, Sirius realized that his eyes were the exact same shade of blue as Mary's.

"Ah," Mr. Woods said, letting go of his daughter. "So this is the young man who has conquered my daughter's heart."

Mary, looking round at Sirius, smiled and pulled him towards them. "Dad, this is Sirius."

When Sirius held out his hand, Mr. Woods took it and they shook hands. It was a rather firm handshake, but he gave him a friendly nod as he did so. "Good day sir, I'm Sirius Black," Sirius said politely.

"John Woods," Mary's father said warmly. "I've heard a lot about you, mainly that you're the best thing that happened to Mary in years," he said, giving Sirius a wink.

Sirius chuckled and when Mary punched her father on the shoulder as she hissed through clenched teeth: "Dad, shut urrrp!", he and Mr. Woods burst out laughing.

"Seriously," Mary said, blushing fiercely. "He's clearly overreacting."

"That I am," Mr. Woods agreed, patting her on the shoulder, but when he looked at Sirius over her head (Mary's wasn't noticing this) he shook his head in a joking manner. "Come now, your mother has prepared an extensive lunch and it would be a shame to keep her waiting."

While the three of them were walking out of King's Cross Station and towards Mr. Woods's car, Mary and her father talked about all kinds of stuff and Sirius enjoyed himself just by listening to their conversation. He noticed that the two of them were close and that Mary's father was very pleased to see his daughter again.

When they got into the car (Sirius in the front and Mary in the back) and Mr. Woods drove off, he looked at Sirius. "You being from an all-magical family," he asked. "Have you ever been in a car before?"

"I have, sir," Sirius replied. "But that was a flying car."

Mr. Woods looked mildly surprised. "A _flying_ car, goodness! Do many of you eh… travel by flying objects?"

"Well yeah, but mostly on brooms though."

"Dad, you should know that, with the use of the right spell, we can make every object fly. Cars, bikes, boats, you name it," Mary explained.

"Really now? Extraordinary…" Mr. Woods said with an admiring look on his face.

"So dad, who else is coming to the Christmas dinner?"

"Well, there's us of course. And lets see, the neighbours Joe and Judy and their children, my colleague Bruce and oh… great-uncle Carl and aunt Lydia."

"Not auntie Lydia," Mary groaned.

Aunt Lydia was a posh lady who considered almost anything about the Woods family inferior to herself. Mary was convinced that her great-aunt only came to the family dinner, because she believed that celebrating Christmas alone was inappropriate and she had nowhere else to go. Mary and Lydia never got along well. The last two years her great-aunt had repeatedly made malicious remarks that – being such a good for nothing girl - she better had to find herself a suitable man as soon as possible. "Well," Mary thought surly, "at least I won't have to listen _that_ comment again."

"Yes, aunt Lydia," Mr. Woods said, glaring at Mary through the rear-view mirror. "And I insist you will behave yourself this year. So no accidentally-on purpose dropping the Christmas pudding on top of her hat."

Sirius snorted, but managed to stifle his laugh in a cough. Mr. Woods attempted to shot Mary another stern look, but his twinkling eyes were giving him away. He even failed to hide a smile when Mary stared out of the window and muttered: "The old hag deserved it."

The remaining part of the journey, Mary (and sometimes Sirius) told Mr. Woods about the first half of their final year at Hogwarts. Her father was very interested in anything magic-related and he asked Sirius many questions about growing up in an all-magical family.

When they had finally arrived at Mary's house, Sirius looked around in awe. He'd always known that she wasn't poor, but this estate was more than impressive, even to him. The Woods didn't live in just a house, but in a gigantic old mansion, built in Victorian style. There was at least five hectares of land surrounding the place and right next to the house there was a large barn.

When Sirius and Mary stepped out of the car and Mr. Woods drove off to park the car, they saw a pleasant-looking woman standing near the front door who shouted: "Finally!"

"Hi mum!" Mary called as she gave her a tight hug. Mary's mother was a small and slender woman with the same hair color as her daughter. When she looked at Sirius, he noticed that her eyes were a warm shade of brown. She smiled at him. "Welcome."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Woods," Sirius said politely as he shook her hand.

Her smile grew even wider. "Not Mrs. Woods, Pat."

"It's nice to meet you, _Pat_."

"Now," Mrs. Woods said. "You guys must be starving. Come along now, I've prepared the most delicious-"

"MARY!" a young girl standing near the barn suddenly yelled.

"Jenna!" Mary called happily and she ran to her little sister, hugging her tight. "I can't believe how much you've grown these past few months."

Sirius witnessed the two of them talking at top speed and he couldn't help but smile. He noticed that little Jenna was an exact copy of Mary in her first year at Hogwarts. The same slender figure, same mouth and hair. The only striking difference was the color of their eyes, since Jenna had inherited her mother's eyes. It was already clear that she would grow up to be just as beautiful as Mary.

"Come on, there is someone I'd like you to meet," Mary said as the two of them walked to Sirius.

"Oh, I know _all_ about you," Jenna said boldly, staring at him. "You're Sirius Black. The guy Mary used to hate with a passion and now loves, with a passion."

Sirius laughed when Mary rolled her eyes and hit Jenna playfully on the head. "Slightly inadequate recap, but true all the same."

Jenna was now shamelessly eyeing him from head to toe. "You're very handsome," she said.

"Why, thank you," Sirius grinned.

Mary snorted. "Jenna, stop hitting on my boyfriend!"

Jenna giggled and pulled a face. "Ieuw, I don't like guys! No Sirius," she said seriously, grabbing his hand and pulling him along with her, "I know you're from a magical family, so I bet you can tell me all about…"

Mary chuckled as she witnessed Jenna pulling Sirius along to the house. She remained behind with her parents. Her mother put an arm around her shoulder. "What a handsome guy."

"Thanks, I know," Mary replied smiling.

"Auntie Lydia is going to be so pleased."

"Mum!"

Mrs. Woods laughed. "I'm just teasing you. Come along love, lunch is waiting."

They spend the rest of the day eating, drinking and talking. Mary also gave Sirius a grand tour around the house and showed him that making out in a garden shed can be just as pleasant as a broom cupboard. While they were having dinner and Mr. Woods was trying to explain to Jenna why it's sometimes better to take someone's tonsils out than leaving them in, Mrs. Woods leaned over to Mary and Sirius. "Oh, I forgot to tell you guys, but with all the guests that are going to spend Christmas here, I'm afraid there is no spare room left. You guys wouldn't mind to sleep in Mary's room together, would you?"

"Not at all," Sirius replied eagerly. "I mean," he quickly added, "as long as there are separate beds."

Mrs. Woods looked mildly surprised. "Two beds?" she said laughing. "We're not _that_ old-fashioned. Besides, I think I can trust my daughter when it comes to this."

Mary raised her eyebrows but as a second thought, decided to give a less cheeky answer. "Yes mum, of course you can."

After a night of playing games (Mr. Woods even succeeded in learning Sirius how to play the cards game Klaber jass), it was time to go to bed. Mary and Sirius pulled their trunks up the stairs. When they were changing into their pyjama's, Mary started to feel slightly nervous. From the corner of her eyes she could see that Sirius was pulling off his shirt and she desperately tried to avoid looking at him.

Sirius couldn't help but laugh. "Come on, you can look. It's all part of the package."

Mary blushed and giggled nervously. "I know," she said giving herself a moment to look up. In that one second she stared at his chest, she gaped at his smooth and muscular torso. Could a guy be any more perfect? She hastily lowered her gaze and muttered: "I eh… I'd better brush my teeth."

In the few minutes that Mary was in the bathroom, she stared into the mirror and managed to calm down. She just had to relax, nothing was going to happen and even if it did, all that she really wanted was that she would get even closer to Sirius. Mary walked back to her room and crawled into bed. Sirius – who was already there – wrapped his arms around her and kissed her on the forehead. "Thanks for doing this," he muttered in her hair.

Mary lifted her head so she could look at him. "What? Sleeping in the same bed as you?"

"Well, although you won't hear me complaining about that, but no: bringing me here, giving me a chance to meet your family."

Mary smiled. "And I'm glad you came along with me. For one thing, now I won't have to endure auntie Lydia's vicious comments about fixing a suitable man."

Sirius laughed. The reflection of the moonlight in his eyes made him look so irresistible that Mary broke his laugh by kissing him passionately. Sirius responded immediately by deepening their kiss, pulling her closer and letting his hands waver over her body. He rolled on top of her as he let his hands slip under her shirt, softly stroking her back, before planting a few kisses down her neck and about to reach a little lower when Mary made him stop by putting her hands on his chest.

Sirius looked at her, his eyes a darker shade of grey than usual. "What?" he whispered urgently.

Mary looked at him and swallowed. "I… I don't think I'm ready for this, Sirius."

Sirius stared at her for a moment.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, forcing herself to keep looking at him.

After another moment, Sirius's expression softened and he reached down to give her a sweet kiss. "It's okay Mare."

He pulled her close to him and she relaxed slightly, nestling her head in the tiny gap between his shoulder and his arm.

"Just take all the time you need. I don't mind waiting a little longer," Sirius said before softly kissing her forehead.

Mary reached for his hand and intertwined her fingers with his. "Thank you for understanding," she whispered.

When they went to sleep, Mary focused on the rising and falling of Sirius's chest. As his breathing was becoming more steady by the minute, she realized how lucky she was. Of course she had always enjoyed to spend the holidays with her family, but now that Sirius was here with her as well, she just knew that this Christmas was going to be the best she ever had.

End of Update


	27. Great Expectations

**A/N: Next update. Hope you'll enjoy this chapter, as it is quite long. **

**Small note to Lisette: your review made me laugh aloud. It was really weird for me to get a comment in Dutch, but I like it. Thanks for the compliment on my English :)**

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

"Wake up, you sleepyheads, WAKE UP!"

The next morning started everything but calm for Mary and Sirius. He didn't exactly know where he was at first. After a few seconds, he slowly started to realize that he was laying on his stomach in an unfamiliar bed with a sleeping girl next to him. When he opened one eye and noticed that Jenna was standing right next to their bed, it all came back to him at once: Jenna, Mary's little sister, spending Christmas with the Woods family, Mary sleeping next to him, last night...

He felt her stir and automatically lifted his arm so she could sit up. "Jenna," she groaned sleepily while she was tiredly rubbing her eyes. "What're y'doing?"

"It's a new day," Jenna said brightly. "Time to get out of bed. Besides, I need your help."

Mary reached over Sirius – who had closed of his eyes again in an attempt to fall back asleep - so she could check the time on the alarm clock standing on the edge her nightstand. "Jenna!" she whispered reproachfully, "It's not even seven o'clock in the morning. Whatever it is you need from me, it is going to have to wait."

"But it's my purple dress for Christmas. I colored it by accident."

"You colored it."

"Yes! I didn't mean to. I was just thinking of something yellow and then all of the sudden my dress turned yellow too."

Mary frowned. "You made it happen by magic?"

"I guess so. Please, mum is going to freak!"

Mary yawned. "I will take care of your dress later, but not now. It's too early in the morning to even think properly. Come back in an hour or two," she said dismissively and lay close to Sirius, wrapping her arms around his waist.

Sirius sighed contently and was about to doze off when he noticed that Jenna was tugging on his arm. He reopened one eye and stared into a pair of curious and particularly awake eyes. "Yes?" he muttered sleepily.

"Will _you_ help me with my dress?"

Sirius raised his head and frowned at her. "Your dress is going to be equally as yellow at nine o'clock."

"Pleeeease?"

Sirius couldn't help but smile at her pleading look. After shooting a glance at Mary and gently removing her hands from his waist, he said: "Alright." He swung his legs out of bed, put on a T-shirt, reached for his wand and followed Jenna to her room.

"It's right there," Jenna said as she pointed at her dress that was hanging on a closet door. 

She didn't need to have done that. The color of the dress in question was such a bright shade of yellow that it was practically blinding Sirius. He blinked at it, having trouble to believe his eyes. "You did that?"

"Yes. Could you change it back now?"

"Yeah sure, but what kind of purple? Lilac, aubergine?"

"Lilac, it was a lilac dress," Jenna said quickly.

Sirius looked at her for a moment, nodded and pointed his wand at the dress. With one wave the dress went back to being perfectly lilac.

Jenna jumped up and down. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou, you're the best!" she called excitedly before hugging him close.

Sirius laughed and patted her on the back. "You're welcome. _Now_ will you let me get back to bed?"

"Be my guest," she grinned.

Sirius yawned and walked to Mary's bedroom, put his wand back on the table, pulled off his shirt and was about to crawl back into bed when he noticed that Mary was now sitting up against the head of the bed with her legs crossed. She shot him an amused look. "I see that my little sister has already found a way to get to you."

Sirius groaned and flopped back onto the bed. He crawled over to Mary and relaxed his head on her lap. "What can I say? Apparently there's something enchanting about Woods girls that I cannot seem to resist."

Mary smirked and stroked his hair. "Well, we are pretty mesmerizing if I say so myself."

Sirius reached for Mary's head and pulled her down. "Now, don't get too conceited there. You're not that stunning," he said teasingly before pulling her into a kiss. After relaxing and cuddling for another thirty minutes, they decided that since they were already awake, it would be better to get up after all.

After they had groomed and dressed themselves, they ran down the stairs. When they walked into the kitchen, they noticed that Mary's parents were already up. Mrs. Woods was busy preparing breakfast and Mr. Woods was reading a copy of the Independent.

"Good morning," he said before sipping his coffee.

"Morning," Sirius and Mary said almost simultaneously.

Mrs. Woods smiled. "I trust both of you slept well?"

"Yep," Mary replied cheerfully while she was reaching out to break off a piece of freshly baked bread that was laying on the kitchen table. "Mary don't," Mrs. Woods said warningly as she slapped her daughter's hand.

"Ouch!" Mary said, nursing her hand, but this didn't seem to impress her mother much. "You know the rules: no touching the food before breakfast is ready. However, now that you're here, you can assist me in preparing the rest of the food."

"Where is a house-elf when you need one, eh?" Mary muttered to Sirius from the corner of her mouth.

"Oh, trust me," he whispered back thinking of Kreacher. "You wouldn't want every house-elf to cook your meals."

Mary giggled and walked over to her mother to ask what she could do to help. Mr. Woods put his newspaper aside and looked at Sirius. "Well, I'm going to chop some wood. Would you like to help me?"

"Sure," he replied and the two of them left the kitchen together. They walked through the back door and around the house until they arrived at the very shed where he'd been spending the previous afternoon with Mary. There was a pile of wooden blocks against the wall and a huge log with two axes laying next to it. Mr. Woods shook the snow off the axes and handed one of them to Sirius.

After chopping a few blocks in silence, he lowered his axe and wiped his brow. "What would you say if we got some assistance?" he asked, winking at Sirius.

"Eh… Magical help?" Sirius asked hesitantly, not sure he was interpreting his question correctly.

"Exactly," Mr. Woods nodded with twinkling eyes. "Do you carry that eh… magic wand with you?"

"At all times, sir."

"Well, use it then!" Mr. Woods called eagerly.

Sirius pulled out his wand, pointed it at the pile of blocks and gave it a wave thinking _Concido Logus_. At once the axes started to chop the wood logs by themselves at top speed.

"Extraordinary," Mr. Woods said as he sat down on a bench and shot an admiring look at the axes chopping the wood. "Just don't tell Pat. She kind of has a problem with using tools she doesn't know how to handle, like magic."

"She won't hear a single word from me," Sirius said grinning.

"Besides," Mr. Woods said, "this will give us some time to talk. Please sit down." He patted the other side of the bench. Sirius – feeling a little apprehensive - slowly walked over to the bench and sat down.

"Now, Mary has told me something about your family history. Apparently you and your parents don't get along very well."

"That's eh… That would be a bit of an understatement," Sirius said, staring down at his shoes.

"How come?"

"Me and my family have completely different views on how to live your life and how to treat other people."

"Different views?"

"Well, I'm not sure how to say this, but did Mary ever tell you that not all wizards are good?"

"Yes, but there isn't a society that doesn't have its legendary villains. Napoleon, Hitler, Stalin…"

Sirius gave Mr. Woods a wry smile. "Yes, well in our world, someone like Hitler is on the rise. Most members of my family support his beliefs. And I don't."

"Well, every family has its bad eggs. I'm sure not all you relatives think the same way."

"Eh well, my niece Andromeda also stepped out. And got disowned as a result, just like me."

Mr. Woods clacked his tongue in a disapproving manner. "I think it's unforgivable to treat your children like that, even if there are… differences."

Sirius shrugged. "It's complicated."

"Even so, you must know that you are always welcome here."

"Thank you sir, I really appreciate that."

"Of course, that all depends on how things work out with Mary. Before I forget, I believe I owe you word of thanks."

Sirius looked up in surprise. "Why?"

"About a month ago I received a letter from Dumbledore about a certain young man attacking Mary and you saving her from him."

"I just happened to be in the right place at the right time."

"Nevertheless, thank you for beating the crap out of him. Saved me a little trip to your school."

Sirius grinned. "Trust me when I say it was my pleasure. Anyway, I would do everything to protect Mary."

Mr. Woods gave him a piercing look. "You're that serious about her?"

"Yes... Yes, I think I am."

Mr. Woods smiled at him. "Glad to hear it. Anyway, there's a certain tradition in our family and even though you didn't ask, I hereby grant you my official permission to date my daughter."

"Oh," Sirius said, feeling a little uncomfortable. "I didn't know that was… Should I have…?"

"No son," he said laughing as he patted Sirius on the shoulder. "All I needed was to see that you're making Mary happy. And you are, that's more than enough for me. Now lets carry this chopped logs back to the house."

Sirius – feeling a complicated mixture of self-pity (remembering his own rotten relatives) and happiness (being accepted by Mary's kind family) – piled up as many logs as he could carry and followed Mr. Woods back to the house. When they had put the wood next to the fireplace and were entering the kitchen, they walked in on a funny scene.

Mrs. Woods was nervously walking up and down the kitchen as she tried to ward off piles of thick black smoke that was coming out of the oven. Mary was leaning against the sink with her wand out and trying to convince her mother to let her use magic and solve the problem. Jenna was sitting at the kitchen table and followed the scene with an excited look on her face.

"Mum, if you'd just let me-"

"-No! You don't have to use magic. I'm sure I can still fix this pumpkin pie in a _normal_ way."

Mary rolled her eyes, walked to the oven and opened the door with a flourish, resulting in another fresh wave of smoke spreading through the kitchen. "Look at it! This pie is beyond getting fixed."

"Pat," Mr. Woods said, coughing as he waved away some of the smoke with his hands. "I'm sure that in this case, a little magic wouldn't hurt."

"Thanks for the insight, dad," Mary said, looking relieved as she took out the blackened pie and put it down on the table where it continued to send black spirals of smelly smoke into the air.

Mrs. Woods lingered in a corner of the kitchen, muttering darkly about "the good old days when Mary was still underage and not allowed to do magic outside of school."

Mary heaved an impatient sigh. "Mum, if you'd like to serve auntie Lydia a piece of this blackened pie, be sure to let me know in advance, because I could really use a good laugh."

Her mother pouted. "Fine, go ahead then."

"Oh goodie, magic!" Jenna cried excitedly as she leaned in closer to get a better look at the pie.

Mary shot a look at Sirius before pointing her wand at the pie and using a processing in reverse spell. It was effective immediately, since the pie on the table was no longer black, but golden brown and it dispersed the delicious smell of freshly baked pumpkin pie.

Mrs. Woods sniffed. "That's eh… wonderful. Well done."

"You're welcome, mum," Mary said as she grabbed some plates and walked to the living room to set the dinner table. The family had a very extensive breakfast. Mrs. Woods warned Mary, Sirius and Jenna to eat as much as possible, because they wouldn't be eating anything else before dinner. After they had cleaned up the mess in the kitchen, Mary paused behind Sirius who was staring out of the window, slid her arms around his waist and rested her head on his shoulder. "What did you and dad talk about?" she asked softly.

Sirius turned his head slightly so he could kiss her cheek. "You, mostly."

"Really?"

"Hu-hum."

"And?"

"Now I officially have your father's permission to date you."

Mary snorted. "Right, like that matters."

Sirius placed his hands on hers. "Actually, It does make things more official."

"Yeah, I guess it does." Mary kissed the back of his neck tenderly. "Hey, I've been thinking. What would you say if I asked you to do some horseback riding?"

Sirius turned around so he could face her. "Horseback riding? But I don't know how."

Mary grinned. "Then I've got just the right horse for you!" she replied excitingly before grabbing his hand and pulling him along to the barn. There were several horses standing in the boxes. "Are all of these yours?" Sirius asked as he looked around with awe.

"Not all of them," Mary said as she guided Sirius through the stables. "Most of the horses are from other people who pay my family to station their horses here. Now, say hello to Zorro."

They were standing in front of a stable where a large white horse was chewing on some hay. "Zorro?" Sirius asked, shooting the horse a suspicious look.

Mary laughed. "Don't let his impressive name deceive you. He is the sweetest horse of all. The only way to get off him is to dismount." She grabbed the rein on Zorro's halter and guided him out of the stable. "Here," she said, handing the rein over to Sirius. "You take him. I'll go and find myself a horse as well."

After a moment of just standing there, Sirius pulled on the rein in an attempt to make the horse follow him. To his surprise, Zorro obeyed at once and followed him without protesting in any way. When he got to the central area of the stable, he noticed that Mary had already tied a coffee brown horse to a pole and was brushing its fur.

"You can tie him up here," Mary said, pointing to a pole next to her and the brown horse.

"Is that your horse?" Sirius asked while he also grabbed a brush and started to brush Zorro.

"Who, Brego?" Mary said as she gently patted her horse on the neck. "Nah, he belongs to my niece but she's out of town and I assumed he'd fancy a ride."

"Don't you have a horse?"

"Not anymore. Not since Mistral."

Mistral... Somehow this name was sounding oddly familiar to Sirius. "Mistral,", he repeated.

"He was my first pony. Died when we were in second year."

Sirius remembered that moment all too well. Mary had been inconsolable and walked around with puffy eyes for days. "He meant a lot to you, didn't he?"

"Well yeah," she replied as she bent down to clean one of Brego's hoofs. "He knew everything about me. He was my first love."

Sirius snorted. "Your first love?"

Mary glared at him from under the horse's belly. "Yes, my _first_ love. I'm not saying he was my big love, am I?"

Sirius crossed his arms. "So who is your big love, then?"

"I'm starting to think that might be you."

Sirius was completely taken aback by her straightforward response. He couldn't remember the last time this had happened to him when he was with a girl, but he had absolutely no idea how to respond. All he did was stare at her in shock. Mary – noticing his shocked reaction - walked around the horses until she was standing in front of him. "I think I should rephrase that last sentence," she said casually. "What I meant is that there's a slight, just a tiny possibility, that you could become a very important person in my life."

Sirius blinked and stared at the ground, still indecisive about what to say to her. Well, he knew what he wanted to say: that he was feeling exactly the same as Mary. That this, them being together, felt absolutely wonderful. But this time, there was that familiar feeling inside that he could not suppress: the fear of being abandoned whenever he opened himself up to someone. His parents, his brother, even his niece Narcissa who used to like him before Bella and Lucius Malfoy poisoned her mind.

"Sirius?" Mary asked softly.

He finally looked at her and bit his lip. "Look Mary, I…"

"Never mind," she said quickly. "I should have kept my big mouth shut. Just forget what I said."

Mary turned around to walk back to her horse, but Sirius suddenly grabbed her hand. "I feel it too," he blurted out.

"Oh," Mary said, looking relieved.

"It's just… I can't… I…" He closed his eyes. "I cannot let people get too close, because I always screw up in the end," he said more calmly.

Mary shot him a confused look. "Screw up? I don't under-"

Sirius opened his eyes and cupped her cheek with a hand. "One way or another, I drive people away from me."

Mary's face relaxed in his hand and she tilted her head to the side before whispering: "I'm not going anywhere."

"You say that now, but-"

"-Sirius", Mary said more urgently as she started to understand what was bugging him so much. "I'm finally starting to know the real you and I have no intention of abandoning you. On the contrary…"

Sirius didn't know what else to do but to hug her as close as he could. They remained standing like that for minutes, until an impatient Brego started to scrape his hoof on the floor. Mary looked up and smiled. "Looks like our horses are getting a bit impatient. Are you ready to go for a ride?"

Sirius wasn't sure if he was, but he decided to lie. "Sure, lets go."

They saddled Brego and Zorro and took the horses outside. After Mary gave him a mini-course on horseback riding, he felt certain enough to go for an actual ride. She showed him all the beautiful spots on the countryside surrounding the estate and it was a mesmerizing environment, especially with all the snow that was covering the land like a thick fuzzy white blanket.

In the end Mary even persuaded Sirius to let the horses break into a gallop and he had to hand it to her: riding a horse at that speed, with the cold wind making his hair stand up in all directions, it was making him feel almost as free as when he was flying on his broom. When Sirius and Mary finally returned to the barn, they were holding hands. They were about to dismount Zorro and Brego when they noticed that a man and a woman were standing in front of the house. Sirius's heart stopped and he nearly dropped off his horse. That woman - with her expensive looking hat and long robes - looked a little too familiar to him. What in Merlin's name was his mother doing here?

However, when the woman turned around, he was almost screaming with joy. That wasn't his mother, but a completely different person. A very posh and sullen faced woman. He was just wondering whether this was the infamous aunt Lydia when he heard Mary groan beside him.

"What?" he asked, squeezing her hand gently.

"Ugh… I was hoping Aunt Lydia wouldn't arrive before tonight, but apparently the shrew has already confiscated the property. Typical… Oh well, there's no turning back now."

Mary dismounted her horse and so did Sirius. They walked their horses over to the couple and when they were almost there, Mary muttered from the corner of her mouth: "Brace yourself."

Aunt Lydia had turned around and was inspecting them with a dissaproving frown. She raised an eyebrow when she was looking at Sirius, and not in a appreciative way. "Mary, I would have expected you to dress up awaiting my arrival." Her voice was high and cold and although the tone was polite, it was obvious that she was feeling superior to anything that surrounded her. Her eyes darted back to him. "Well, aren't you going to introduce us properly?"

Sirius noticed that Mary was grinding her teeth and tried her very best to remain polite. "Certainly," she replied with a phoney smile. "Aunt Lydia, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, aunt Lydia."

Sirius held out his hand and aunt Lydia took it reluctantly. She let go as soon as possible and wiped her hand on her skirt. Without a note of embarrassment she shot Mary a stern look before saying: "Now I know I told you to seek a suitable husband, but honestly; surely even _you_ could have found yourself something better than a simple groom?"

End of Update


	28. A Very Muggle Christmas

**A/N: Some brief replies to a few comments:**

**About me being one of the fastest fic writers ever: well, that's easy. I already finished writing this story on another site ;) I'm not exactly just copying and posting it here, but I don't have to write it all either.**

**About Sirius being afraid to commit to Mary and the other Marauders as well: I see that as two different things. His friends have supported him from the very beginning, they know all about his rotten family and how that messed him up a little. With girls however… The way I see Sirius, I don't think that many of them knew about how much his bad relationship with his family was affecting him. Thus, opening up to Mary is something different than when he got to know James & co at the age of eleven. Hope that makes it clear :)**

**About aunt Lydia being a possible witch: no, not as far as I know. She just likes to wear long coats/robes. Not wizard's robes, though! Mary's relatives (with the exception of Jenna) are all Muggles.**

**And here's the next update. Enjoy! **

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

Mary was so offended that she couldn't speak at irst. That old hag was assuming that Sirius was a _groom_? The nerve of that woman! How could she be so rude? Mary felt a strong desire to smack that posh face that was so nastily smirking at her. She desperately clenched her fists at her side to prevent her hands from reaching out to aunt Lydia's ghastly hat, stuff it all the way over her face and push her right into the stinking dungheap next to the barn.

Instead, she just glared at aunt Lydia with a furious look on her face while she tried to steady her breathing. Her aunt did not seem intimidated. On the contrary, she pursed her lips and shot Mary a questioning look: "Well?" she inquired.

Mary's eyes glinted dangerously and her mouth had become so thin that she looked like a perfect imitation of Professor McGonagall. Sirius could actually hear her grinding her teeth for a moment before she angrily stuttered: "You… You vile… Ignorant stupid-"

"Well," Sirius intervened right on time. "As much as I appreciate the compliment of being called a groom - especially since before today, I had never sat on a horse in my life – I feel it as my responsibility to inform you that I'm not a stable boy or have anything to do with horses in general. I go to the same school as Mary and am one of her classmates."

Aunt Lydia frowned. "So then you're just a mere schoolboy?"

Mary noticed that Sirius was trying hard to remain calm, but knowing him well, she knew that he was also about to explode. Nevertheless, he managed to smile politely before saying: "Yes, just a schoolboy. Of course, if you insist on preferring that groom after all, I have no trouble in switching to a different career."

Aunt Lydia opened her mouth to make another snappish comment, when uncle Carl stepped in. "Now now my dear, you have had your say. Come my darling, it's cold and I could really use a whiskey or two. Or perhaps an entire bottle," he added as an afterthought as he took his wife by the hand and guided her towards the house.

Mary was still glaring at aunt Lydia's back and as the couple was opening the front door of the house, she muttered darkly: "Let me jinx her. A nice bat-bogey hex will serve her right…"

Sirius chuckled. "I won't contradict the fact that your aunt is a complete tart, but-," he burst out laughing when he looked at Mary's furious glare. "Oh come on, Mare, why are you letting her get to you like that?"

"Because I don't care if she's bashing me, she's been doing that as long as I can remember, but honestly: she could have treated you with more respect!" she spat.

Sirius reached for her hand. "But love, don't you see it?"

"See what?"

"She's jealous! At your beauty, your youth and Godric knows what else. Honestly, it's so unburdened she's envying you it could have been written on her forehead in bright green letters."

She shot him an incredulous look and snorted. "Her – jealous, at me? I wish."

Mary grabbed Brego by the rein and started to walk her horse to the barn. Sirius followed with Zorro and when he had tied his horse to the pole in the stable, he looked at her. "So if she's not being jealous, then why does she loathe you so much?"

Mary walked over to Zorro and helped him to pull off the bridle and replace it with a halter. "Because I exist," she said simply after another pause.

"Exist?" Sirius frowned, stepping back so that she could take off Zorro's saddle.

"Hu-hum," Mary nodded as she placed the saddle on a stable door before turning back and thoughtfully caressing the horses's manes for a moment. "I suppose you've never wondered about how old my parents were when they had me."

"No, not really, why?"

"My dad was twenty-two, my mum twenty."

Sirius gave her a blank stare and she smiled. "I know that's a normal age to have children in our world, but in Muggle society twenty is considered to be very young. Not that my parents meant to get pregnant so soon… I was an accident."

"An accident?"

"According to my dad: the most blessed accident of his life," Mary grinned. "Of course," she continued more seriously as she started to untangle Zorro's tail with a brush, "my mother had to drop out of med school because of the pregnancy. And although she became a nurse after I was born and has always been very contented about her job, I'm quite sure it is not up to aunt Lydia's standard."

"So she blames you for your mother having to drop out of med school?"

"Probably among other things, but yes, that's why she always looks at me like I'm an insect that needs to be squashed. Jenna on the other hand is seven years younger than me _and_ was planned, so aunt she likes her. Although I'm not entirely sure if that woman is capable of actually _liking_ another person other than herself."

Sirius crossed his arms, leaned back against the stable door and cocked his head from one side to the other as he pretended to ponder over what Mary had said. "Nope, not feeling any better about aunt Lydia."

Mary huffed while grabbing Zorro's rein and guiding him back to his stable. When she had returned and started to take care of Brego, she shot Sirius an amused look around the horse's head. "You better. I think I might have to curse you the minute you start to believe she's not so bad after all."

He laughed. "Oh, don't count on that."

"Anyway, there is one thing I forgot to mention to you. It's tradition for my family to dress up at Christmas but obviously, dressing up Muggle-style doesn't include wearing dress robes. I take it that you didn't bring a suit with you?"

"I didn't know I had to. Frankly, I think I don't even know what a suit looks like."

This time it was Mary who laughed. "No worries, I think we can resolve that issue, if I can just…" She stepped back and eyed him from head to toe. "Yes, it'll be fine."

When Mary grabbed Brego's rein and wanted to pull the horse along with her, Sirius stopped the horse by gently placing his hand on its nose and shot her a questioning look. "What is going to be fine?" he asked suspiciously.

Mary sniggered and she leaned forward. "Show Sirius, not tell," she whispered in a seductive voice before winking and bringing Brego back to his stable.

Luckily for Sirius's curious state of mind, he would find out about Mary's plan soon enough. After they had cleaned up the bridles and saddles, she took him by the hand and ran back to the house. When they were heading up the stairs he assumed that they were going to Mary's bedroom but instead, she walked straight to a large closet in her parent's bedroom. She opened the door and started to look through her father's clothes until she had found what she was looking for: the black suit her father had been wearing at his wedding.

She put the suit on the bed and dived back into the closet, only to resurface with a grey shirt and a light blue tie. "Now," Mary said as she put the clothes in place on the bed, "I noticed that you're exactly the same size as my father when he was younger. I'm sure he won't mind if you borrow this suit for tonight."

Sirius stared at the clothes. "Is there any particular reason why this tie is blue?"

"No," Mary said, smiling at him. "But that color will make your eyes look fiercely grey. Right, I have to get dressed too, so just change into the suit and I'll be back to check on you later."

She turned to leave the room when Sirius asked: "Wait, what are you going to wear?"

"A dress of course. What else?"

Sirius - already looking forward to seeing her agin - grinned appreciatively. "Well hurry up then, I can't wait."

She rolled her eyes at him and hurried back to her own room. After taking a shower and washing her hair, she got into a beautiful black cocktail dress with hundreds of sequins embroidened on it. She put on some make up and used magic to fix her hair in a high bun with the exact right amount of locks falling out to achieve a perfect nonchalant look. She put on some perfume as a finshing touch and slid into a pair of high black heels before she was ready to go.

When she got back to her parents bedroom and was about to walk in, she found Sirius having an agressive fight with his tie. He was already wearing the trousers and the shirt of the suit and was currently trying to tie the thing around his neck, but he was failing miserably. Mary leaned back against the doorpost and witnessed his struggle with an amused look on her face; she couldn't help falling in love with him even more. She always had a real soft spot for men in suits, thought it made them look extremely hot. When Sirius was nearly choking himself in another attempt to knot the tie in the right way, she decided it was time to come to the rescue. "Everything alright there?" she asked innocently.

Sirius turned around and, trying to loosen the choking tie from his neck, shot her an annoyed look. "This… bloody thing won't… come off," he panted. tugging at the tie, only resulting in getting choked even more.

"Hang on," Mary said and she walked over to him. "It's easy once you know how to do it," she said calmly as she pulled off the tie. "Look, I'll show you."

But he wasn't paying much attention to Mary when she showed him how to knot the tie properly. He pulled her close and whispered in her ear: "How am I supposed to remain focused when you're looking like this?"

Mary blushed, but imperturbably focused on knotting his tie. "Look," she said, "And now you'll hold the front of the knot loose with your finger, pass the wide end down through the loop and-"

Her explanation got interrupted by his fierce kiss. "Sirius!" she giggled as she pulled away. "You _have_ to pay attention, because I won't show you again."

Sirius laughed and kissed her again. With his lips locked against hers, he muttered: "You can show me how it's done when we're like this."

Mary giggled. "Now I can't see what I'm doing." she told him in a muffled voice.

He finally decided to let her go so that she could finish knotting his tie. "There," she said while giving it a final tug.

Sirius admired himself in the mirror for a moment. "Hmmm, not bad."

"Like I said, I hope you've been paying attention," she said and loosened the tie in one movement.

"Hey! What are you doing?"

"You have to try again. It's the only way you'll learn."

"Honestly, when will I ever be wearing a muggle tie again?"

Mary shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe one day you'll thank me for this. I'll see you downstairs in a bit," she said cheerfully and walked out of the room, leaving a bewildered Sirius behind.

Mary was still sniggering to herself when she frolicked down the stairs and walked into the living room. She noticed that most of the Christmas guests had already arrived. She waved at the neighbors Joe and Judy who were talking to her mother near the fireplace, ignored aunt Lydia and uncle Carl and headed straight to a corner of the living room, home to a few comfortable-looking arm chairs. Jenna – wearing her lilac dress – was begging her father to put on some other music. When Mr. Woods showed her a Beatles record, Jenna cheered for one particular song. "Please daddy, please, Mary loves that song too!" she said.

"I love _what_ song?" Mary asked curiously.

"Eight days a week," her father replied with an amused look on his face, because that actually was Mary's favorite Beatles song. She and Jenna had been listening to it repeatedly over the last few years and never got bored with it.

"Well… I haven't heard it for a while now, so I guess it would be fun to play it again."

"Fine," he said with a sigh and searched for the right number on the record. As soon as the song started, Jenna jumped up from her seat and pulled Mary to the middle of the room. Soon both of them were dancing and singing together loudly:

_Ooh I need your love babe,  
Guess you know it's true.  
Hope you need my love babe,  
Just like I need you.  
Hold me, love me, hold me, love me.  
Ain't got nothin' but love girl,  
Eight days a week._

Eight days a week  
I love you.  
Eight days a week  
Is not enough to show I care.

Love you ev'ry day girl,  
Always on my mind.  
One thing I can say girl,  
Love you all the time.

By the time Jenna took her hand and started to turn pirouettes, Mary looked up and saw that Sirius had arrived and was talking to her father. His tie looked alright; actually, it looked more than alright: it was perfect. When Jenna had let go and continued to dance on her own, Mary walked to Sirius and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You did that all by yourself?" she asked, giving his tie an inspecting look.

"Nah, I got a little help from my wand."

Mary rolled her eyes at him. "I should have known…"

Sirius chuckled. "Well, at least it looks good, doesn't it? Anyway, this is very cool music.

"Yeah, they're the Beatles."

"I know that! I'm always wondering when people will discover that Ringo Starr is a wizard."

Mary laughed. "I'd be surprised if even the other Beatles are aware of that. But seriously, if you like this music you should talk to Brice. She has had a crush on Paul McCartney for years."

Before Sirius could reply, Mrs. Woods announced that it was time to have dinner. Sirius had never been at a Muggle Christmas-party before, but it turned out not to be that different from spending this holiday in his world. People ate and drank a lot while they were talking and listened to slow music. And with the exception of the ever grumpy-looking aunt Lydia, the other guests were quite nice to Sirius. He didn't even mind that Mary wasn't spending much time with him, because she was constantly helping her mother to prepare and serve the food.

When the Christmas dinner had come to an end, Sirius and Mary joined the other guests in sitting around the fireplace and listened to funny hospital anecdotes from Mr. Woods and his colleague – also a doctor - Joe. It was nice and warm in the house and Mary felt very content and safe as she snuggled up to Sirius and enjoyed her steaming mug of Irish coffee. 

But then something remarkable caught her attention. A large barn owl was sitting right in front of the window and tapped his beak against the glass repeatedly in an impatient manner. Because everyone else was talking loudly they hadn't noticed any of this yet. Mary nudged Sirius and cocked her head in the direction of the window. He followed her gaze and frowned. "What is Rufus doing here?"

"Rufus?"

"Prongs's owl. I think I'd better go and have a look. Are you coming with me?"

Mary nodded and got up. After they had excused themselves to the other guests, they walked to the kitchen and stepped outside. Rufus hooted softly and stretched his leg so that Sirius could take off the note. He quickly skimmed it and laughed. "Pffft… I was being worried for a moment, but all he and Lily are asking is if we could bring a few records to Hogwarts. Apparently it's still not clear if that band is actually going to come. Oh, and they're wishing us a Merry Christmas, again."

"Well, write back that we will bring the records and also wish them a Happy Christmas, _again_."

Sirius grinned and quickly scribbled down a reply on the back of James's note. As soon as he had attached the letter to Rufus's talon, the owl flew off and disappeared in the dark clear sky. "So now what?" Mary asked, shivering slightly because of the icecold wind. "D'you wanna go back to the others?"

"Actually I was thinking… We could give each other our presents tonight, somewhere where we can be alone?"

"Alright," Mary smiled. "But we really should step inside first, I'm freezing."

"Aww, you poor thing," Sirius said as he put his arm around her and pushed her back inside.

"I'll go first," Mary said as she opened a kitchen cabinet and pulled out a tiny package. "I thought it would be wise to hide it from Jenna. She's always chasing after Christmas presents and this is a magic one, so…"

Sirius took her present and sat down on a kitchen chair. He unwrapped it carefully and when he realized that Mary had given him a magnificent penknife, his jaw dropped. "Mare," he said slowly, admiring the gift as he turned the knife around in his fingers. "I love this."

"It's not just an ordinary penknife," Mary explained as she sat down opposite him. "Look, it has these special attachments to unlock every lock or knot."

"It's absolutely amazing."

"But there's something you should know: the woman from Diagon Alley said that you can only pass on the knife to someone when that person needs it more than you do."

Sirius shot her a look. "I have no intention in giving it away."

Mary laughed. "I'm not talking about now, but maybe... someday in the future, you'll know someone that could really use this knife whereas it's not of real use to you anymore. However, if you give it away when this is not the case, the knife will destruct itself immediately."

"Right," Sirius said thoughtfully as he put he knife in his pocket. "Thanks Mare," he said before giving her a sweet kiss. "Now it's my turn." He reached in the pocket of his suit, got out a tiny jewel box and put it on the table.

Mary picked up the box a little hesitantly and when she was opening it, she gasped. Inside was a beautiful necklace with a small shimmering diamond dangling from it. Because of its tiny size, the necklace looked very sophisticated. "Wow Sirius, I don't even know what to say. It's so beautiful…"

"It'll be even more stunning when you're wearing it," Sirius said, standing up and picking up the necklace. When he was carefully putting on the necklace and his fingers gently grazed her neck, Mary practically swooned. "There," Sirius said when he finished putting the jewellery on.

Mary got up from her chair and walked to a tall mirror in the hallway. She admired the necklace from different angles until Sirius suddenly appeared behind her. "I love it, thank you so much," Mary said, turning around so she could kiss him.

"You're welcome. Did you notice I made sure that the jewel on the necklace is not too big?" he asked, pulling her even closer when they broke apart.

"Yes and I love that, but eh… why?"

"Because any bigger jewel would deduct the attention you would normally get because you're so beautiful."

Mary gazed at him. "You're joking."

"No, I'm dead serious," Sirius said with a note of amusement in his voice.

He was smirking slightly, but when Mary looked into his twinkling eyes, she knew that he _was_ being serious. She stood up on her toes to give him another kiss that lasted for ages and all the time she remembered how she had been thinking about the possibillity that this Christmas could be the best one ever until now. By now Mary knew for a fact that she would always remember this Christmas as the best holiday of her life.

End of Update


	29. Padfoot's Prank

**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

The next days flew by in an instant. Mary couldn't believe how much fun she and Sirius were having so far away from Hogwarts. The only "but" was the ever so cantankerous expression of aunt Lydia (uncle Carl turned out to be a lot nicer than previous years, just as long as he was on his own). Luckily, she and Carl would be leaving early on Boxing Day.

That morning, Mary woke up at the break of dawn, feeling very cheerful. Aunt Lydia would have left the estate before noon! She realised it was still too early to get up, so she stretched lazy and snuggled close to Sirius again, who was still asleep. She carefully turned around to face him so she wouldn't wake him up. Mary loved watching Sirius while he was asleep. For one because he never snored, but even more because his face was looking so peaceful. She smiled to herself and gently stroked his cheek. He groaned softly and stirred a bit, but didn't open his eyes.

Mary continued to caress his face while she was thinking about how she had gotten used to be sleeping in the same bed. It would be weird to spend the night alone again once they had returned to Hogwarts. Not that it _had_ to be that way… Of course she could join Sirius and the other guys in their dormitory, but - for obvious reasons – that prospect didn't really appeal to her.

But there _was_ another way. Every guy in Hogwarts believed that it was impossible for them to get to the girl's dormitories. And they were right about that most of the time. Whenever a guy had the nerve to set foot on one of those steps, a wailing claxon resounded through the Common Room and the staircase transfigured into a stone slide, sending him and anyone else on the stairs down to the very bottom.

But there was a way to beat the system. Not many people at Hogwarts knew about this. The guys didn't have a clue and most girls didn't know about it either; Mary even doubted that the Professors were aware of the fact that there was a flaw in their perfect system.

And she wouldn't have known it either if she hadn't been friends with Brice. Not that she had found out about it all this on her own. Her great-great grandmother discovered the solution by accident when she and her boyfriend were kissing each other goodnight on the bottom of the stairs. They were holding hands while they kissed and when she stepped backwards onto the first step, he – unaware of what he was doing - followed. And instead of the resounding claxon and transfiguring stairs, nothing happened. Apparently, as long as someone was holding hands with his (A/N: or hers ;) ) girlfriend, it was possible to go her dormitory together. No one knew why this was possible. Mary, Brice and Lily had discussed it many times. Perhaps Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff weren't so strict about these rules after all or maybe they just liked a good prank, who knows? Fact was that Sirius could be sleeping in her bed way after Christmas, at Hogwarts! However, Mary still hadn't decided if that was what she really wanted. She decided to deal with that later and closed her eyes to snooze until it would be a more proper time to get up.

A few hours when they were getting dressed, Mary couldn't stop singing and humming a variety of Christmas songs in a cheerful way. Sirius watched all of this with an amused look on his face. By the time she was humming "Sleigh Ride" he asked curiously: "What's going on with you?"

Mary, who was brushing her hair in front of the mirror, turned around to look at him and sang in a clear voice: "Come on, it's lovely weather for a sleigh ride together with you…"

Sirius arched an eyebrow and she rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, it's that lovely Muggle Christmas song. You've been hearing it on the radio for days!"

"It's not the song that is making me wonder what is up with you."

"Aunt Lydia!"

Sirius stared at her at her for a moment. "By Merlin Mary, what did you do to her?"

Mary laughed and chucked a hairpin at him. "Nothing, you prat! She's going home today. And that means-" she said slowly as she got up and walked over to him, "-that this house, this estate, this whole environment will be aunt Lydia-free in less than... an hour! And that is making _me_ a very happy girl," she finished before giving Sirius a sweet kiss and walking towards the door. "You coming?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at her. "You're not planning on getting back at her, are you? Anything magical, I mean?"

"Of course not! What makes you think I would?"

"Because I know you. Jinxing her would be the perfect revenge for how she treated you all those years. But I'm not sure if the Ministry would appreciate it when you hex an innocent  
Muggle into oblivion just because "she's a bloody old hag"."

She shrugged. "I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't tempted, but I'm beyond revenge now. She's leaving the house, that's enough for me now."

Sirius chuckled and followed Mary to head downstairs and get some breakfast. "It's not that I wouldn't support pranking your aunt, on the contrary, but I don't think it's possible without violating the law."

When they got downstairs they were just in time for breakfast. Everyone else was already sitting at the table. While they were eating freshly baked bread, eggs, bacon and fresh fruit, aunt Lydia tried to convince Mary's father to sell all the horses and rebuild the stable into a guesthouse. Mr. Woods, polite as ever, smiled and said kindly: "I'm afraid that is never going to happen, Lydia, not as long as I live. I love my horses, they're part of this family."

Aunt Lydia pursed her lips. "But they're so big and dangerous, and they smell."

Mary huffed. "Horses do not smell! That eau de cologne you insist on wearing in fatal quantities, now _that_ smells."

"Mary..." Mr. Woods said warningly.

She cringed slightly under her father's reproachful look, wrinkled her nose and stared at her plate while saying (without meaning a single word): "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

Aunt Lydia frowned at her and continued her lamentation. "Like I said, horses _smell_ and they're unhygienic. And they frighten me a lot. In fact, I think I almost despise horses as much as I hate dogs."

Jenna snorted. "Dogs? How can you be afraid of dogs?"

Aunt Lydia gave Jenna a small smile. "Well, not all dogs of course. As long as they're small and clean, I don't mind. But those large, hairy, neglected "things"… They make me want to scream and run away."

Mary shot Sirius a look that was a mix of annoyance and disbelief. He didn't reply but gave her a quick wink before finishing his coffee with twinkling eyes and a mischievous grin on his face. She gave him another - more questioning - look, but he still did not respond.

When breakfast was over, the time for aunt Lyida and uncle Carl to go had finally come. Mrs. Woods ordered Mary and Jenna to bring their luggage to uncle Carl's car. When they had carried the suitcases to and putting them in the car, their parents were already saying goodbye to their guests. Mrs. Woods called Mary and Jenna so that they would also wish the guests a good journey home. When she noticed that Sirius wasn't with them, she asked: "Mary, where is Sirius?"

"I asked him to chop some more wood for me," Mr. Woods replied.

"Go find him. I don't think he'd want to miss saying goodbye to our guests," her mother said.

"Alright," Mary nodded, glad to get away from them for a moment. She turned around and ran around the house to the garden shed, but she couldn't spot Sirius anywhere. Her eyes darted around the garden for a moment before she cried: "Sirius!"

"In here," his voice came from inside the garden shed.

"They're leaving. Mum asked me to come and get you."

"Tell them I'll be there in a moment. I just needed to finish chopping this log first."

"Sure," Mary said and she walked back to the gathering at the front door.

But Sirius did not join them. At least… Not in human form. Right when Mary was about to wish uncle Carl a good day, a large scruffy black dog came running towards them from around the corner. As soon as aunt Lydia spotted the animal, she screamed in horror and jumped right behind uncle Carl while yelling: "What is that beast doing here? Carl, keep that monster away from me!"

Her husband tried to chase Sirius the dog away with his umbrella, but it didn't work. It only seem to excite him even more. He barked loudly and excitedly wagged his tail while he was jumping around the couple, completely ignoring the Woods family.

A stunned Mary, who knew _exactly_ what was happening, witnessed the spectacle with her mouth hanging wide open. Jenna was roaring with laughter and her parents were watching the scene with bemused looks on their faces. Aunt Lydia seemed absolutely terrified and, all dignity forgotten, was screaming like a little girl. She kept smacking uncle Carl with her purse while she shouted: "Don't just stand there! Do something!"

When Sirius the dog finally managed to get around uncle Carl's umbrella and wold be able to reach aunt Lydia, she screamed even louder and decided to make a run for it. She quickly snatched the umbrella, chucked it at Sirius and sprinted - her precious long robes dragging behind her in the muddy snow - to their car as fast as she could, slamming the door shut behind her.

Uncle Carl coughed and calmly picked up the umbrella from the ground, tilted his hat as he gave the Woods family a final nod and quietly walked to his car, kindly patting the dog on his head on the way.

As the car drove off, Sirius the dog gave one final bark and disappeared around the corner of the house. The stunned Woods family – besides Jenna who was still laughing hysterically - waved at their relatives as they watched them drive off the estate. Once the car had disappeared out of sight, Mrs. Woods could no longer hide a smile. All she said was: "Oh dear…" She would never say it aloud, but Mary knew that, deep down inside, her mother didn't like aunt Lydia all much either.

Mr. Woods's face crinkled into a smile and soon he joined Jenna in roaring with laughter. Mary's mother giggled and right when Mary burst out laughing as well, Sirius (in human form), came running towards them. He stopped dead before them and gazed at their laughing faces in astonishment. "What did I miss? Where are uncle Carl and aunt Lydia?"

Mr. Woods finally managed to get some control over his laughter. "You just missed them, son, I'm sorry. We got some eh… assistance from a rather large dog."

Sirius faked a surprised look. "Right…" he said thoughtfully. "Was that a black, sort of scruffy dog?"

"Yes!" Jenna cried. "Did you see it?"

"It passed me on the way over here and disappeared into the woods. Rather frightful animal if you ask me… That is if you don't like dogs," he added with twinkling eyes.

Mrs. Woods stifled another snort. "Well, now that the peace has returned, who wants to bake some cookies?"

"Me!" Jenna exclaimed happily. While she and Mr. Woods followed her mother back into the house and Sirius was about to do the same thing, Mary stopped him by grabbing his hand. "And I suppose _this_ wasn't illegal?"

Sirius chuckled. "As long as the Ministry doesn't find out… Besides, this possibility was just too good to be true. Now, I feel like learning how to bake cookies, too." He gave a grinning Mary another wink and pulled her back into the house.

December 30th arrived sooner than they wwere realizing. They would be heading back to Hogwarts early that morning. The Express left at 9.00 AM, so they had to get up pretty early. Mary couldn't wait to show Sirius her dress robes for the New Year's Eve party, but she didn't want him to see it before the actual night, so she carefully put the outfit on the bottom of her trunk, right next to her father's records she would bring along for the party.

After they had some breakfast it was time for them to say goodbye to Mary's mother, since Jenna would be accompanying them to King's Cross station. After Mrs. Woods had given Mary a close hug and told her to be careful, she turned to Sirius and hugged him close. "Take care of yourself and remember, you're part of the family now. Don't ever forget that," she said kindly.

Sirius smiled. "Thank you for everything, Pat. I've had a wonderful time."

They got in the car and Mr. Woods drove off in the direction of London. When they arrived at King's Cross, he parked the car and he and Jenna walked Sirius and Mary to the numerous barrier on platform 9 and 10. Jenna was very excited about this, considering she would be passing the very same barrier for the first time in September.

Mr. Woods gave Mary a kiss on the cheek. "I expect to see you again with top grades and a Hogwarts degree," he threatened jokingly. "Just be careful," he added more seriously as he gave her a tight hug.

He shook hands with Sirius. "Till we meet again." he said with a friendly nod.

"Goodbye sir," Sirius said. "Oh, and I've magically chopped enough wood for you to get through the entire Winter," he added with a grin on his face.

Mr. Woods beamed at Sirius like he had just won the lottery.

Mary had just said goodbye to Jenna and Sirius kneeled down so he could kiss Mary's little sister on her cheek (she blushed). "Now promise me that you won't color any more dresses," he said, giving her a fake stern look.

"I'm going to miss you," Jenna pouted. "When we'll be seeing you again?"

Sirius looked up at Mary and she shrugged. "Graduation, I think?"

"See, we will see you again at our graduation, at Hogwarts." Jenna's face lit up as she heard the magic word. "I'm counting the days already!" she said happily and stepped back so he and Mary could go to platform 9 3/4. They waved back at Mr. Woods and Jenna one last time before walking through the barrier together.

They spotted Brice and Peter at once, since the two of them were chatting right in front of the last carriage of the Express. "Hullo!" Brice said cheerfully as she hugged Mary while Sirius talked to Peter. "Did you have a good Christmas?"

"Yup. You?"

"It was fine. Although our Christmas tree was infested by a Bowtruckle and it took us two days to find out _that_ was the one throwing twigs at us, and then another day to get rid of it. Speedy little suckers. Anyway, did you bring along enough records?"

"Yeah. Beatles, Stones, Jackson 5 and mum insisted to include an Abba record as well."

Brice pulled a face. "Abba?"

Mary grinned. "Not my favorite kiind of music either. Look, there's Remus," she said and waved when she saw he was walking onto the platform.

"Oh, right," Brice said nervously while she tried to fix her hair. "Hi Remus," she said awkwardly.

"Hey," He replied quietly, trying not to look at her.

Mary lifted an eyebrow as she was witnessing this peculiar greeting of Remus and Brice. After the five of them had boarded the Express and made their way to a compartment, she made sure she was sitting between Brice and Sirius. "So," she said confidentially as she leaned over to Brice. "Did you hear anything from Timothy?"

Brice snorted. "Merlin no! Do you want to know what he gave to me?"

"Oh, yes! I forgot about his Christmas gift. What was it?"

"A bottle of ink."

"_Ink_?"

"Yep. Honestly…" Brice said, shaking her head as if she still couldn't believe it herself. She looked up and noticed the beautiful necklace around Mary's neck. "That's gorgeous. Is that from…?"

"Sirius," Mary beamed.

"Now _that's_ what I call a present," Brice said as she admired the necklace. "Wow, is that a real diamond?"

Mary, still beaming, nodded and looked at Sirius, who was currently reporting to Remus and Peter how he had transformed into a dog and chased aunt Lydia off the estate. They were all roaring with laughter when he gave them a perfect imitation of aunt Lydia screaming and running away, flapping her arms around her like a mad woman.

"Of course," Mary intervened, smiling at him, "this was illegal and he could have gotten in some real trouble."

Remus chuckled. "How I wonder? No one besides us knows he's an Animagus."

"Exactly," he said confidently as he let himself fall back to the bench and wrapped an arm around her. "Besides," he said looking down, "you wanted to jinx her and what good would have come from that?"

Mary shrugged. "There was only one moment I truly wanted to hex her, I was fine about it most of the time. Which, of course, doesn't necessarily mean that it wasn't extremely satisfying to see my "beloved" aunt being chased off my parent's property."

"I wish I could have been there," Peter said with a dreamy look on his face.

"Well Pete," Mary said as she helped herself to a Sugarquill. "If you'll be really nice to me _and_ can get me a Pensieve, I might just let you borrow my memory."

The guys spent the last part of their journey to Hogwarts playing a game of wizard's chess while the girls gossiped about who would be going to the Ball with who. Finally, when the train was starting to slow down, everyone got their trunk and made their way to the end of the train.

As soon as they had jumped out of the train, they noticed that James was waiting for them at the end of the platform. He was carrying a large bucket and waved at them. "What have you got there, Prongs?" Sirius asked curiously as he walked a little ahead of the others.

"Chops of meat," James replied as he put the bucket down on the ground. "How was your Christmas, mate?"

"It was great," Sirius said shortly as he peeked into the bucket. "Why are you carrying large chops of meat?"

"What do you mean pieces of meat?" Brice asked as she and the others reached Sirius and James.

"Well, it's food," James said.

Mary looked down at the bucket. "Ieuw! Food for who?"

"Jackie," James replied.

"Who's Jack-" Peter started but he never got to finish his sentence, because his question got interrupted by a bright light and a loud roar that was coming from one of the meadows surrounding the train station.

Sirius stared at James for a moment. "Are you saying… D'you mean that Jackie is a…"

"Jackie is a dragon," James grinned proudy. "Come on follow me, I will introduce you guys properly."

End of Update

**A/N: Apologies for the minor cliffie! I will try to post the next chapter asap ;)**


	30. New Year's Eve

**A/N: Thanks for all the kind reviews, guys. They're really encouraging, so thanks a lot and keep them coming!**

**To '****curiositykils' who made a little visit to HPANA and read the entire story: I'm glad you enjoyed the fic so much. Your comment made me blush ;)**

**To everyone else: we will get to the end of the story on this site eventually, but that will take another few months, I think. Oh well, it's the journey that counts. Isn't that what they say?**

**Speaking of which, here's the next update. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Thirty**

James startd to whistle, picked up the bucket and walked off the platform, only pausing when he noticed that no one was following him. He turned around to shoot a look at his friends who were all staring at them with open mouths. "Do you guys want to see that dragon or not?"

After another staggering silence, Remus cleared his throat. "You're joking, right?" he asked hoarsely.

"Sure Moony. In fact, that sound you just heard? That was just the Hogwarts Express driver undergoing the after-effects of eating a rather spicy burrito," James said sarcastically.

Mary laughed as she imagined the rather chubby Express driver eating a burrito, but she was one of the few who did. "Oh, come on guys," she said cheerfully and plunked her trunk against the wall of the train driver's house next to the station. "Lets go and have a look at that dragon."

The others shrugged and also put their trunks near the house before following James and Mary, who were walking a little ahead of them. "Where's Lily?" Mary asked while they were walking down the road towards the dragon's meadow together.

James sniggered. "Back at school trying to work things out with the band. She flat out refuses to have anything to do with Jackie."

"Hang on," Sirius said as he caught up with them. "Lily _knows_?"

"Of course she does!" James replied. "I'm not hiding anything from her and even if I wanted to… I wouldn't know _how_."

"How did she take it?" Remus asked.

"She was furious at first. Especially when we visited Jackie and Lily's new robes almost caught fire because the dragon didn't seem to like her a lot. Apparently Antipodean Opaleye dragons get vexed when they're confronted with the color auburn. Anyway, after I promised Lil that there will be several experts around to keep an eye on Jackie and that it will be my responsibility if something _does_ happen, she gave in. Although she's still not too happy about it. Neither is McGonagall, but Dumbledore – considering the present experts, I presume - seems to be okay with it."

"Who are those experts you keep mentioning?" Peter asked.

"Dragon experts from all over the country. And Hagrid of course."

"Hagrid? Why doesn't that surprise me?" Brice said sarcastically.

"Yeah, he even volunteered to stay out with Jackie all night." James chuckled. "Rather him than me. But he is rather close to her. Which makes sense, since he's the one who found her."

"How in the name of Merlin did he fetch an Antipodean Opaleye dragon?" Sirius asked incredulously. "They're only native to New Zealand and Australia."

James shrugged. "He says he won her over a game of cards down at the pub. Hi Angus."

They had arrived at Jackie's meadow and it was more than obvious that there was a dragon inhabiting this small piece of land. There was hardly any snow on the ground left and more than one of the surrounding trees and bushes had been burnt. A short skinny and old white-haired man with an extremely wrinkled face was leaning against the fence. "About time, Potter. She's getting rather impatient," he said with a raspy voice as he stared at the bucket in James's hands.

"I know, sorry, but I had to pick up my friends," James said apologetically while he handed Angus the bucket.

"No biggy," Angus grinned, giving everyone else a friendly nod. "Now, I assume "Miss J" already smelled this lovely sheep meat, so why don't we-"

Angus's last words got drowned in an inconceivably loud roar, followed by a cloud of vivid red flames that set a tall tree close to Brice and Mary on fire. They screamed and jumped behind Sirius and Remus. When a second wall of flames was hitting a nearby bush, Mary clamped her arms around Sirius's waist and buried her head against the back of his neck. By the shaking of his stomach, Mary could tell that he was laughing at her, but she couldn't care less. She glanced sideways and noticed that Brice had done the exact same thing with Remus. The only difference was that he wasn't laughing like Sirius, but looked rather uncomfortable with feeling Brice's arms around him.

"Alright," Angus's raspy voice sounded after Jackie's outburst seemed to have come to an end. "The coast is clear, ladies. I gave her the food and that is going to keep her satisfied for a while."

Mary dared to peek at Angus around Sirius's shoulder, which made the old man laugh. "It's alright to be scared of dragons, young lady, but it's safe enough to come out of your… hiding place," he said as his eyes darted at Sirius.

Sirius pulled Mary beside him and wrapped his arm his around her shoulder. "I didn't know you were scared of dragons. Or anything for that matter," he added as an afterthought.

Mary shot him an incredulous look. "They breathe _fire_."

He laughed and kissed her on the forehead. "Yes, but they're also pretty when they are at peace. Look," he said, pointing to the centre of the meadow where Jackie was now contently feasting on the meat.

When she followed his finger, Mary had no choice but to agree: Jackie was a fine specimen of a dragon. She had seen pictures of Antipodean Opaleyes in books, but they were even more magnificent in real life. Jackie's skin was iridescent, her scales a pearly white and even from this distance it was clear that the dragon's eyes were multicoloured and didn't have pupils. "That's eh… a very beautiful dragon."

"I told you so," Sirius said, chuckling.

"Which doesn't mean that I have any intention in getting any closer. Her, sorry," she added when Angus shot her a piercing look.

"Me neither," Brice said quietly.

Mary turned around and noticed that her friend had let go of Remus and that they were standing about five feet away from each other. There was an awkward, rather tense silence between them. Brice shot her pleading look and Mary, understanding what this was about, said: "Well, as much fun this has been, I think we should go to the castle. Lily will be wondering what's keeping us."

"I suppose you're right," James said after shooting one last longing look at the dragon. "D'you guys think you can Apparate to the school's gates? I'm afraid there aren't any horseless carriages at the station today."

"Apparate?" Peter squeaked. "What if I'll splinch myself?"

James rolled his eyes and hit his friend playfully on the head. "You're not going to splinch yourself, Wormtail. You passed the test, you can do it."

Peter shot James another scared look and Sirius rolled his eyes. "You know that? You Apparate first and if you _do_ splich yourself, we'll bring along the pieces you left behind."

Peter gulped but, after taking a deep breath, apparated without splinching himself.

"Silly prat," James muttered darkly.

"You guys should treat Peter with more respect," Brice spoke up. "With the way you guys are always slating him, it's no wonder that he's so insecure about his magical abilities."

"We don't slate Peter," James replied indignantly. "He's our friend. Why would we want to do that?"

Brice rolled her eyes at him. "Fine, then I got it wrong. Whatever. Can we go now?"

She was about to Disapparate when Mary held her back: "Wait, what about our luggage?"

"I can take care of that," Angus said, while magically assembling a new piece of fence to replace the part that had been destroyed by Jackie's last attack. "I need to stop by Hagrid later anyway."

"That's settled then," Remus said and, without waiting for the others, disapparated with a soft pop.

The others followed his example and after they were reunited with Remus and Peter, walked to a deserted Great Hall (the other New Year's Eve feasters would arrive the next day) where Lily and Alison were sitting at the Gryffindor table, surrounded by scattered pieces of parchment. "Hey Lil," James said as he sat down and gave her a kiss. "How did things turn out with the band?"

Lily smiled and waved at the others. "Hey everyone. Well, we finally came to an agreement. They'll be playing for two hours, from-" she moved around some rustling pieces of parchment, "-eight till ten and then they have to leave immediately, because they're expected to be on stage in Paris at ten thirty PM."

"Which band are we talking about?" Sirius asked.

"The Weird Sisters, some new band with raving reviews. I don't know them, but James loves their music and from looking at your face, so do you."

"Well yeah!" Sirius roared. "They're awesome."

Lily and Mary frowned at each other and Brice laughed. "Sirius is right. They _are_ amazing."

"Well, you're the music expert, so you should know. Mary, Sirius, did you bring the records?"

Mary nodded. "Yeah, Beatles, Jackson 5 and some others."

"Great," Lily nodded. "Half-wizard live band, half-commercial Muggle music, I think everyone is going to enjoy themselves."

"And so what if they're not?" Alison said, shrugging. "As long as we're enjoying yourself... Did you guys see Jackie?"

"See?" Mary huffed. "Almost turned into toast is more like it!"

Lily laughed. "I knew you wouldn't be too happy about it, Mare. And me neither…" she said, her emerald eyes glinting dangerously. "I can only imagine the amount of owls the parents will be sending when they hear that a _dragon_ was part of the welcoming committee."

James, obviously having discussed this matter about a dozen times before, rolled his eyes and changed the subject. "So Alison, wanna tell us who's going to be your date at the party?"

Everyone shot Alison a curious look, but she smiled mysteriously and was about to open her mouth to say something when Peter accidentally knocked over Lily's goblet so that the entire table got flooded with pumpkin juice. "Careful there Pete," Mary said, pointing her wand at the table while thinking _scourgify membrana_ and the pumpkin juice disappeared at once, leaving the pieces of parchment unharmed.

"Like I was going to say," Alison said, shooting Peter an annoyed look before she continued to calmly study her nails. "It is going to be a surprise. Lets just say that my date isn't someone you would expect."

"Well, as long as it's not Snivellus…" Sirius said sniggering.

"Actually," Alision said coolly. "To me Severus is a very charming and handsome guy. Not that it matters much… He's already going with someone else."

"Who?" Mary and Brice asked eagerly at the same time. They had been gossiping about who Severus's date could be back on the train.

Sirius glared at Mary. "Since when do you care?"

Mary glared back. "I don't, I'm just curious."

He glowered at her for another moment before shrugging moodily. "Fine."

Mary grinded her teeth at his misplaced jealousy. As if she would _ever_ go out with Severus Snape. For one, he wasn't her type and two, he hated her Muggleborn guts. She sighed and smiled at Alison. "So, who's his date?"

"A fifth year Slytherin called Joanna Whyle. She's pretty, but also a bit arrogant. Oh well, maybe she'll act differently around Severus."

Mary didn't know Joanna very well, but she had spotted her and her gang of friends walking around the corridors like they owned the place. Somehow she was having trouble to picture Severus and Joanna together. Then again, Mary thought while she joined the others to walk to the Common Room, she hadn't been able to picture herself and Sirius for years and look where they were right now.

With all the last minute arrangements for the party, the next day seemed to last only a few hours and before they realized, New Year's Eve had arrived. Jackie the dragon had been placed in a large cage near the Entrance Doors. Hagrid, Angus and five other dragon experts were lined up near the cage as they kept an eye on the dragon and ocassionally tossed large chops of sheep meat into the cage. Contrary to the small bucket that James had been carrying yesterday, there was a whole cart parked next to the cage, filled with meat.

Lily and James had asked Professor Kettleburn to multiply the lanterns on the lane from the gates to the school and fill them with a dozen fairy lights. This produced a wonderful lighting effect on the snow, which seemed to glitter like gold.

Not that any of them would be walking across that lane tonight. They were already inside to prepare themselves for the party. "So," Lily told Mary for the twentieth time that night as she was checking something on her specialized party time table. "Don't forget: you and Sirius will be patrolling the courtyard at eleven PM."

Mary sighed. "No, I won't, just like I told you ten minutes ago, and an hour ago, and two hours ago _and_ this morning." She got up from putting on a pair of strappy sandals and walked to Lily. "You've done everything you could. The party is going to be awesome and if it's not, then you are not to blame. Let. It. Go," she said calmly, tugging the party time table out of her friend's hands and placing it on the table.

Lily closed her eyes for a moment. "It's just that I'm so nervous. I've never organized a party like this before and you know people are going to expect "the biggest party Hogwarts has seen in years". James and his big mouth," she muttered while she tiredly rubbed her forehead.

Mary kneeled down next to Lily's chair and frowned at her friend with a concerned look on her face. "But it _is_ going to be the biggest party Hogwarts has seen in ages! It's New Year's Eve. You have the Weird Sisters! You… You have a dragon for crying out loud!"

Lily shot her an annoyed look. "Don't even get me started on that."

Mary's mouth twisted slightly under her stern glare. "Well, you know dragons scare the crap out of me, but to display an Antipodean Opaleye in a cage for one night at this party… Come on, you've got to admit, that's pretty cool."

A tiny smile crept over Lily's face. "I'll transfigure you into a shrimp you if you ever mention this to James, but I agree. This so beats that parade of porlocks at the finale of the thestral derby back in 1923."

"Absolutely," Mary nodded, grinning. "Now, we are supposed to meet the guys downstairs in about twenty minutes, so I suggest you'll get dressed."

"Oh my, is that the time already?" Lily said, jumping up quickly. It was only then that she spotted Mary's dress robes, who was wearing a stunningly long cobalt blue dress. It had a silver lining and dark blue straps on her back. Lily gasped when she admired the dress by touching the soft fabric of satin and tule. "Wow Mare, this is extraordinary. It makes the color of your eyes come out even more than usual. Where did you get it?"

"Madam Malkins," Mary beamed. "I was actually looking for a green robe, but when she spotted the color of my eyes, she practically forced this dress on me. Not that she needed to; it was love at first sight."

"Sirius won't know where to look," Lily grinned. "I need to get changed now."

While she got changed into her own stunning dress robes (light beige tule with pink and red traces), Mary walked over to the tall mirror next to their closet and thought about what she was going to do with her hair. After a few attempts to put it up, she twisted it half up and let the remains of her hair fall over her back. Right when she was about to check whether this looked alright, Brice – who was wearing a magnificent suede brown dress robe – walked out of the bathroom and said: "Are you done?"

"Almost. What do you think of my hair?" Mary said as she showed Brice the back of her head.

"Looks fine to me. Not that anyone is going to notice your hair with a gorgeous robe like that one."

"Thanks," Mary grinned. "Your dress looks great, too."

Brice smiled. "Shall we go? It's nearly seven thirty and I have to meet up with Timothy, so…"

Mary shot her a look. "Are you sure you still want to…"

She shrugged. "Yeah, it's okay. It doesn't look like something is going to happen between me and Remus soon anyway and Timothy and I are just friends. Besides, I'm probably hanging out with you guys most of the time anyway. Now where is Lily?"

"Right here," their friend replied while she hurried out of the bathroom. "I've got my robes on, my shoes, my make up, but my hair is still a complete disaster."

"Well, hurry up, then," Brice said, tapping her foot on the floor imatiently.

"It just won't stay put," Lily said nervously as she desperately tried to pin up her long auburn hair.

Brice - looking a bit annoyed - opened her mouth, but Mary thought it would be wise to step in. "Look, why don't you go ahead to meet up with Timothy and inform James and Sirius on the way about this er… hair crisis. I'll fix Lily's hair and we'll come down as soon as we possible."

Brice nodded. "I think that's the best thing we could do, yes. Well, ehm… good luck," she said, shooting another look at Lily's hair before she left the dormitory.

Lily shot her an anxious look. "Is it really that bad?"

"No, it's not," Mary laughed. "You have the most beautiful hair and I'll fix it in a second. Watch the master work," she said, smirking slightly as she reached for her wand and tapped Lily's hair. Her hair rolled up at once and twisted itself into a sophisticated and complicated-looking knot. "Wow…," Lily said, shooting her an admiring look. "You're really good."

"I know," Mary said. "You know, if Healing won't work out for me in the end, I could always become a hairdresser."

"So it's Healing again, isn't it?" Lily asked as she folded the timetable and put it in her purse.

"Hmmm… I haven't given that whole Auror possibility a second thought to tell you the truth."

"Well, you still have time," Lily smiled. "Lets go."

The two of them shot one last glance in the mirror and walked out of the dormitory. When they were standing at the top of the stairs, Lily stopped. "Mare, are you feeling nervous too? I mean, having to walk down those stairs like this. What if I trip?"

Mary looked back at her. "I wasn't nervous before, but I am now. Thanks a bunch, Lil."

Her friend laughed and held out her hand. "Together?" she asked with twinkling eyes.

Mary looked down at Lily's hand for a moment, took it and smiled at her friend. "Together," she said and the girls made their way down the stairs together.

End of Update


	31. Out With A Bang

**A/N:**** Next uppie. Hope you guys will enjoy the read. It's a lot of happiness and drama, all packed in a single chapter, haha. Two small notes: I doubt that the Weird Sisters were already famous in the Marauders Era and I'm not sure if the Jackson 5 song "I want you back" was already released in 1977 either. I just decided to leave it like this…**

**Reviews are always welcome! –Mara.**

**Chapter ****Thirty-One**

"What is taking them so long?" James said impatiently while he was pacing in front of the stairs.

Sirius, looking more at ease while he leaned back against the table with his hands in his pockets, shrugged. "Relax mate. They're girls. Of course they're late, it's only natural for them."

"But _why_?"

"You heard what Brice said. Mary is helping Lily to pin up her hair."

James stopped pacing and glanced sideways at Sirius. "But it's been seven thirty PM. Lily and I should have have met up with McGonagall at the Entrance Hall by now," he said. He ruffled his hair nervously and his eyes kept shooting back to the stairs of the girls dormitory.

Sirius got up from the table and walked over to his friend. "Prongs," he said soothingly and he put a hand on his shoulder. "They'll be down in a minute, so please just rel-" He stopped talking mid-sentence as James – who had stubbornly continued to stare at the stairs – dropped his jaw. Sirius followed his gaze and also felt his jaw drop.

Mary and Lily were holding hands as they descended the stairs together. Wait, they weren't walking. They were _gliding_. Sirius half-noticed that Lily was looking spectacular in her light-coloured dress robes, but his eyes only seemed to be reserved for Mary. She looked like a goddess in her perfect cobalt blue dress robes, which fell beautifully around her body and was making her eyes light up like sapphires.

Sirius reached for her hand to pull her over to him. He wanted to tell her how amazing she looked, but somewhere in the process his brain had seemed to have been disconnected from his mouth and he was only able to stare at her. This staring gaze seemed to freak Mary out, because she was shooting im a nervous and slightly insecure look. Sirius cleared his throat and finally managed to get his voice back. However, he was still dumbstruck by her appearance, so all he could stutter was: "Wow… Mare, you… amazing… You look… Wow…"

Mary – obviously relieved that Sirius finally said something – blushed and squeezed his hand. "You like it?"

Sirius smiled and let his free hand roam over Mary's back. He could sense that she was shivering slightly under his touch, but in a good way. "Like it? I'm speechless."

"You're not looking too bad yourself either" she replied, admiring his dark grey dress robes.

"Oh believe me, _no one_ will be looking at me as long as you are standing next to me. Speaking of which, you know what this means, don't you?"

"Eh… That we are going to have a wonderful time?"

"No. Well yes, but… It means I won't be able to leave you out of my sight for a second."

Mary giggled. "You're exaggerating, but I like it."

Sirius grinned and pulled her into a kiss. It was only after a few minutes that James – who had been cuddling with Lily himself – interrupted them and said they should be going downstairs now or else McGonagall would get _really_ mad. And sure enough, when they were finally standing in front of McGonagall, the Head of Gryffindor wasn't looking happy. Her nostrils were flaring and her arms were crossed while she was tapping her foot in an impatient manner. She was wearing a different hat, a rather festive one with bright red and gold feathers, but there was nothing celebratory about their Professor at the moment. "Potter, Evans, Black and Woods, you are late. This is unacceptable. Twenty points from Gryffindor."

"But Professor!" James and Sirius protested simultaneously, but one look of McGonagall silenced them. "Well," she said, glaring at the four of them. "What are you waiting for? Off to your posts!"

Sirius and Mary exchanged a nervous glance with James and Lily before hurrying past McGonagall. "Oh and Miss Woods?" McGonagall said was they passed her.

"Yes, Professor?" Mary asked nervously as she turned around.

"Marvellous dress robe."

"Thank you, Professor," Mary grinned before walking to the Entrance doors with Sirius.

Sirius still couldn't keep his eyes of Mary as they were walking outside. He continued to stare at his girlfriend thinking he was the most lucky man in the world. Mary, noticing his admiring gaze, laughed and gave him a gentle push. "Stop staring at me like that!"

"I can't help it, that dress is hypnotizing. Are you sure no one cast a spell on it?"

Mary didn't answer. Instead she was staring at the line of people waiting in front of the doors. Sirius couldn't really see what was so special about that. Who hadn't seen a row before? But when he followed her gaze more closely, he noticed that she wasn't looking at the guests, but at Alison – who was ticking names of people on a long piece of parchment – and more specifically, at someone standing next to her. He blinked furiously to see if his eyes were not deceiving him. That guy next to Alison was no other than Peter.

Alison, spotting them first, waved. "There you are! What kept you so long? Could you please make sure that the guests won't bring any fireworks into the castle? You have to put them in there-" she pointed to a large bag on the ground. "-Or Filch will go ballistic. He threatened to fillet me alive if it does happen." She snorted. "I'd like to see him try. Nevertheless… Keep an eye on things," she said before continuing to check names on her list.

Mary and Sirius each walked to one side of the row to check if the guests were carrying any "forbidden goods" and he made sure he was standing closest to Peter and Alison. "Pssst," he said to Peter. "Wanna tell me what this is about?"

Peter laughed nervously. "You remember she said she wouldn't mind going out with me? Well I… hadn't forgotten about and... well, I eh… I… asked her. And to my utter surprise, she said yes." He shrugged. "And here we are."

"Good on you, Wormtail," Sirius beamed as he patted Peter on the shoulder. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I tried, Padfoot, but you and Prongs weren't paying attention. Moony did know, though."

"You asked out a _girl_! How could we have been oblivious to that?"

"Because you guys were engaged in other… things," Peter said, cocking his head in the direction of Mary, who was currently trying to confiscate the enchanted snowballs of a fifth year Ravenclaw.

Sirius looked at her for a moment and laughed. "I see your point."

"Hey! Do I have to do everything by myself here?" Alison snapped.

"Eh no…" Peter mumbled and got back to work. Sirius frowned at Alison before getting back in line. He checked a couple of guests (most of them were talking excitedly about Jackie and what more they could be expecting from the party) before looking down at the next group he was supposed to inspect. It was a group of fourth year Hufflepuff girls who were all giggling nervously as they got nearer to him. He shot them a quick inspecting look and, guessing that these girls wouldn't be carrying any forbidden items under their tight dress robes, gave them his trademark smile and a wink. The girls giggled madly and when they hurried past him, Sirius could clearly hear one of them whisper: "He's so cute!"

Sirius chuckled to himself as he successfully confiscated a Dr. Fillibuster's Spinning Fireball from a seventh year Hufflepuff called Steven Ashby. However, he did not throw it in the bag like Alison had told him to, but put it in his own pocket. He was sure this piece of firework would come in handy in one of their future pranks. Sirius grinned mischievously when he figured what would happen if he and James put the fireball in Snivellus's morning pumpkin juice.

When all the guests had gone inside, Sirius and Mary paid a brief visit to Hagrid, who was guarding Jackie as if she was his own flesh and blood, while Alison and Peter cleaned up the mess the students had left behind. "Ah, will yeh look at this beauty?" Hagrid said while throwing another big chop of meat into Jackie's cage. "I woul' love teh keep her for another while. Bu' Dumbledore says that' ain' possible."

"He's right. It's a bloody dragon for crying out loud," Mary said, eyeing Jackie suspiciously.

Hagrid looked at her in surprise. "Yeh don' like dragons?"

"They breathe _fire_, Hagrid. That doesn't sound like a description of a suitable pet to me."

Hagrid burst out laughing and gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder, which would have made her tumble over if it weren't for Sirius who caught her just in time. "Ah Mary, I don' blame yeh, but yeh wouldn' be so cynical abou' dragons if yeh knew how adorable they can be. Anyway, is almost eight o'clock, shouldn' you lads be headin' inside fer the concert?"

"Yeah, we should," Sirius said quickly as he noticed that Mary wasn't quite done discussing this matter just yet and pulled her along with him. "See ya, Hagrid," he called over his shoulder. "I'll drop by again later tonight."

While they were walking towards the castle, Sirius asked: "Why did you have to say that?"

Mary shot him an incredulous look. "Because I'm having a bad feeling about this. Keeping a dragon so close to the students? I agree with Lily and McGonagall, no good can come of this."

Sirius shrugged. "There are more than enough experts around to keep an eye on things. It'll be fine."

Once they had entered the school and walked into the Great Hall, it was almost eight o'clock. They spotted Lily and the others near the stage on the left side of the Hall. James had crawled onto the stage and was about to introduce the Weird Sisters to the partying crowd.

"Listen up people," he boomed, using Sonorus. "You may think you've seen it all. Fairy lights who guided your way to Hogwarts, a choir of enchanted snow sculptures and even an Antipodean Opaleye as the honorary member of our welcoming committee. But… What would a Hogwarts party be without music? Plenty of artists begged me and Lily to come here and perform for you. However, we thought Celestina Warbeck (the crowd "boooed" loudly) and Musidora Barkwith and her exploding tuba (more "booos") were far too soporific and I'm glad to hear you agree. That is why I am more than happy to introduce _the_ band of the moment! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, prepare yourself for an _awesome_ performance of…" he paused for a few seconds. "The Weird Sisters!"

The crowd went mad by simply hearing that name. When James had jumped off the stage and the Weird Sisters started to play their number one hit "Wild Pumpkin Pie" the crowd cheered and started to dance wildly. Lily, Mary and the other Muggle-borns in the Hall watched the concert for a while (they had to admit this was awesome music) before joining the others in dancing to the music.

Far too soon for their liking, it was almost ten o'clock and Myron Wagtail, the lead singer of the band, announced that the next song would be their final number of the night. When that song had come to an end, the Weird Sisters bowed for a round of massive applause that lasted for about five minutes. After they had left the stage, James climbed back up to announce that the remaining time of the party would be filled with popular Muggle music. Part of the crowd sighed disappointedly while the other half remained cheerful. However, as soon as popular songs by the Bee Gees and the Beatles resounded through the Hall, all students cheered loudly and continued to dance.

At eleven o'clock, Sirius and Mary kept an eye on the courtyard for an hour, just like Lily had asked them to do. When Sirius was telling some fifth year students off when he spotted them making out behind a bush and told them to get back inside, Mary couldn't help but laugh aloud. "Don't you think you're being a hypocrite here?"

"No, why?" Sirius asked, while parted some of the bushes with his wand to check if there were some other couples hiding behind the branches.

"Welll, let's see. How many times have you been caught like this?"

Sirius laughed. "I lost count back in fourth year."

Mary rolled her eyes and muttered something unintelligibly and he laughed even harder. "Are you jealous because you're not one of those girls?"

"No," she said firmly.

"Because if you insist," Sirius said as he pulled Mary close to him, grinned mischievously and cocked his head over to a nearby bush. "I'm sure we can arrange something, madam."

She arched an eyebrow and snorted. "No way! Besides, it's almost midnight. The courtyard is deserted right now and we should really head back inside or we'll miss the countdown."

They hurried back to the Great Hall and found their friends. It was exactly five minutes to twelve and Mary joined Brice and Lily, who were dancing to the popular Jackson 5 track "I want you back".

_When I had you to myself  
I didn't want you around  
Those pretty faces always made you stand out in a crowd  
But someone picked you from the bunch  
One glance was all it took_

When the chorus of the song was about to start, Brice wrapped her arms around Lily and Mary's shoulders and said cheerfully: "Lets all sing together!" And they did. As the chorus resounded through the Hall, the three of them, their arms still around each other, sung loudly:

_Oh baby give me one more chance  
(show you that I love you)  
Won't you please let me  
(back in your heart)  
Oh darlin' I was blind to let you go  
(let you go baby)  
But now since I see you in his arms  
(I want you back)_

James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Timothy and Alison watched this spectacle with amused looks on their faces. Although they had heard songs of Jackson 5 before, they – descending from all-magical families - didn't know the lyrics by heart. The only pureblood who _did_ know many lyrics of Muggle songs was Brice, who loved all kinds of music. As long as it was a good song, she didn't care whether it was made by Muggles or wizards.

That was probably why Brice was looking so disappointed when the music died away abruptly. All the students looked at the stage where Dumbledore had conjured large bright red numbers in the air that were counting down from one minute to zero. The tension in the Hall rose as the last seconds of 1977 were ticking away. When the numbers came down to fifteen, the entire Hall, students and teachers alike, started to countdown together:

"Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!"

Sirius reached for Mary's hand and pulled her closer to him so that they could herald the year 1978 together.

"Four! Three! Two! One! HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Mary turned around and kissed Sirius before hugging him close and whispering "Happy New Year, sweetie," into his ear.

"Happy 1978," he replied softly before planting a dozen kissed all over her face. Then he walked over to his friends and wished them a happy new year as well. He looked over at the stage where Dumbledore's numbers had now formed the number 1978.

The party continued with Abba's "Happy New Year" and Sirius burst out laughing when he noticed Brice scowl. They all knew she hated Abba music with a passion.

After dancing to a few more songs the happy atmosphere of the party changed rapidly. Someone had managed to smuggle a spinning fireball into the school after all and had made it explode near the back of the hall. A few students had been severely injured, including the "funnyman" himself. The remaining crowd of students panicked and hurried away from the scene.

The teachers and Lily responded quickly. She ordered Sirius to go and get James – who had gone outside to check on Jackie and her attendants – and he was about to run off when he found Mary. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, fine. Just go and get James. I'll join you as soon as I can," she said while trying the comfort a fourth year Gryffindor-girl who was crying hysterically.

Sirius nodded and sprinted to the Entrance doors. As soon as he got outside, he noticed that James was standing near Jackie's cage, talking to Angus. "Prongs!" he yelled.

His friend looked around and from one look at Sirius's face, he knew something had gone terribly wrong. "What is it?" he yelled as he ran towards him.

"Some jerk made a fireball go off!" Sirius yelled back.

James groaned angrily and was about to ran to the hall when he turned around. "Padfoot, you stay here."

"Keep an eye on Jackie, will you?" Angus's raspy voice sounded behind him. "They might need my help inside, so it's your responsibility to watch her now."

Sirius nodded and walked to Jackie's cage, although he made sure not to get too close to her. He needed to be able to keep an eye on the dragon _and_ its surroundings. For a while nothing happened. Sirius looked back over his shoulder several times and noticed that most of the students were standing in front of the doors together, probably waiting for further instructions. "Well, as long as they don't leave the grounds..." he mumbled to himself when he turned back. And then he got frightened to death.

There was a girl approaching Jackie's cage. She wasn't walking straight but wandering and was holding a bottle of elf-wine in her hand. It was obvious that this girl was drunk. Sirius's eyes shot from Jackie to the girl and back to the dragon. The animal was watching the girl closely and snarled as she snorted repeatedly with smoke coming out of her nostrils. Sirius pulled out his wand and quickly ran to the cage. As he came closer, he noticed that the girl was no other than Cassidy. "Stupid tart," he thought before yelling: "Cassidy, don't move!"

The girl turned around and her face lit up as she saw who had called her name. "Hey Ssssssiriuss, look at thisss dragon. Isssn't sshe cute?"

"Look out!" Sirius yelled when he saw that Jackie was breathing in deeply, but it was already too late. The dragon breathed out a large wall of fire that only missed Cassidy by inches. He dived right on top of her in an attempt to protect her from a second cloud of fire. He pointed his wand directly at Jackie's eyes and cast a conjunctivitis curse. This worked, because although the dragon was still breathing fire like mad, she was now sending rays of fire in every direction but the right one.

Sirius tried to drag Cassidy away from the dragon before his spell would be wearing off, but she had trouble getting back on her feet. He didn't have a choice. He picked her up, carried her over to a bench near the greenhouses where he put her down. "Are you hurt?" he panted.

To his utter amazement, Cassidy started to giggle. "No, I'm... fine," she said slowly before hiccoughing loudly. "That wasss… fun and you're really cute," she added while she gently caressed his face.

Sirius leaned back to remain out of her reach and sighed. "Cassidy, you're completely wasted. I'm going to get you a sobering potion. Stay here."

"No, please don't go," Cassidy said pleadingly as she grabbed his hand and pulled him back down. "Jusst help me get back on my feet."

As soon as Sirius pulled her up, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. "What do you think you're doing?" he said warningly while he tried to gently push her away from him.

"I forgot how cute… you are," she sighed dreamily. And before he knew what was happening (although he was sure that he saw Cassidy looking at someone behind him), she kissed him. He was so stunned for a moment that he didn't know what to do. He simply stood there trying to comprehend what was going on before his mind shot back into gear and he jerked his head away. This didn't seem to bother Cassidy a lot. An evil smile was creeping over her face as she glanced over his shoulder. "Ooooh, we've got company."

Sirius didn't like the tone of her voice and, with a growing feeling of apprehension, he slowly turned back to see who was standing behind them. His heart stopped. It was Mary. She was standing at the end of the lane and was staring at them. She looked absolutely vivid and shot him a hateful look before she turned around and ran away.

"Mary!" Sirius yelled. He let go of Cassidy who - still being tipsy - tumbled over into a nearby bush, but Sirius couldn't care less. He ran after Mary and, probably because she was wearing high heels, managed to catch up with her rather quickly. "Wait, just let me explain," he panted as he reached for her hand.

"Get away from me, you jerk!" she cried, pulling her hand away from his.

"But you didn't see what you thought you saw. It was Cassidy, she planned it all! I… I… Please listen. Mary!" Sirius said with a note of panic in his voice. He tightly wrapped his arms around her in an atempt to force her to calm down. She tried to wriggle out of his grip and when she realized he was too strong for her, she turned around quickly and hit him hard in the face.

This caught Sirius by surprise and he let go of her at once. Mary panted angrily and tears were streaming down her face when she shot him another look, full of hurt and loathing, before she hissed virulently: "Leave. Me. Alone!" She turned around and stormed up the stairs of the school. Sirius followed her, but more slowly. He realized that there was no way she would ever listen to him now.

When he passed the Entrance Doors, Lily walked towards him with a concerned look on her face. "Sirius, what happened to Mary?"

Sirius sighed miserably. "One big misunderstanding. Lily, I mean it. Cassidy tricked me and I didn't figure out what she was doing in time. I know how it must have looked to Mary, but I swear I didn't…" He looked up at her. "I didn't."

He somehow expected Lily to be angry, but she wasn't. Instead, she hugged him close and said softly: "Somehow, and I don't know why because your history should tell me otherwise, I know you didn't cheat on Mary."

Sirius shot her a grateful look. "Thanks. Look, I should go upstairs. I need to talk to her."

Lily held him back. "No," she said clearly. "She doesn't want to see you right now. She's hurt, confused and angry. You just stay here and ask James what you can do to help to clean up the mess. I'll go."

Lily let go of him and walked off in the direction of the Common Room. When Sirius was watching her disappear around the corner, he felt as if he was trapped within a nightmare. But this was no dream, it was reality. He stood there for another few minutes and tried to get his head around the fact that he had gone from a feeling of ecstatic happiness to ultimate misery in less than an hour. He feared that he had managed to lose Mary for good. Because how in Merlin's name could he ever win her back if he _knew_ how suspicious Cassidy's embrace must have looked?

End of Update


	32. Love, Interrupted

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews. They make me happy. Yeah, so that was a bit of a nasty place to leave things, I know. I **_**also**_** know that this is going to happen more often, even though I'm not a big fan of cliffhangers myself, haha. **

**However, the good news is that I already finished writing this story on my 'home' HP-site, so that means I will update this story every few days (or every day), so you will never have to wait that long for the next chapter.**

**One of you said something ****about everything being relatively happy now while we know it will get really bad. Yeah… That's something that will come into play. Right now it's a fluffy love story, but it will get more dramatic and full of action later on. However, I have been told that the post-Hogwarts part is even better than this. Oh well, just sit back and enjoy the ride, I say.**

**Oh and y****es, Cassidy is a total cow, I know. She will once again establish her lack of a brain at the end of this chapter, though ;-)**

**Enjoy, and R&R. Thanks!**

**Chapter ****Thirty-Two**

_How could he?_

That same thought was running through Mary's head over and over again as she was running through the long corridors of Hogwarts towards the Common Room. She was feeling a lot of confusing emotions at the same time: intense sadness, anger, hate but most of all sheer disbelief. They had been so happy together, she just couldn't understand why Sirius would kiss some other girl. Wait, not just some girl: Cassidy, of all people!

The tears were streaming down her face, making her vision blurry. Mary wiped them away angrily as she kept walking without looking back. With every step she took, she became more and more angry. She wasn't even sure where her feet were taking her. All she knew that stamping like this felt good. It seemed like the further she was getting away from the party, the more she was leaving her problems behind.

After a few minutes she noticed that she had already arrived in the corridor that led to the Common Room. She slowed down a bit and walked towards the portrait of the Fat Lady. The Lady was already asleep. Her head was leaning against the frame of her portrait and she was snoring loudly.

"Pssst!" Mary hissed, trying to wake her up. This sound didn't seem to work, so after a few attempts she decided to clap her hands together. This _did_ work, because the Fat Lady's eyes shot open. "Wha-Whaat?" She yawned before muttering sleepily: "Password?"

"Hornbeam," Mary muttered as she shot an anxious look over her shoulder to see if Sirius was already coming after her. He was the last person on earth she wanted to see right now and she planned to go the dormitory as soon as she got inside.

Mary moved forward without looking back and instead of entering the Common Room, she walked straight into the portrait. When her nose hit the canvas, the Fat Lady said indignantly: "Careful there!"

"Ugh," Mary said, rubbing her nose as she took a step backward. "I told you the password, didn't I? Why aren't you letting me in? Hornbeam!" she repeated impatiently.

"I'm afraid that password is incorrect."

"What?" Mary snapped. "That has been the password for months!"

"The password changed at midnight. The Headboy- and girl are aware of this, as are the prefects."

Mary stared at the Fat Lady. "But," she spluttered. "You know who I am."

"Yes, I do," the Fat Lady said.

"So can you please let me in?"

"Sorry dear, I can't do that."

Mary swore loudly and stamped her foot on the floor in frustration (the sound of her heel clacking on the marble floor resounded through the entire corridor), but the Fat Lady didn't move an inch. Mary sighed and flopped down on the floor against the wall. There was nothing she could do; she was going to have to wait for someone to arrive who _did_ know the new password. She just hoped that this person would not be Sirius Black. She sniffed, pulled her legs up and rested her head on her knees. Once again the tears returned, but she didn't even try to suppress them. She'd never realised that her heart could physically hurt, but the current aches in her chest were making perfectly clear that a broken heart _did_ exist.

Mary never heard the approaching footsteps, so she jumped when someone was putting a cool hand on her shoulder. She half-expected it to be Sirius and felt relieved when she looked up in the emerald eyes that belonged to Lily. "Oh Lil," she said, her voice wobbly.

"Shhh," Lily said soothingly while she put her arm around her shoulder.

Mary calmed down slightly after a few minutes. She wiped her tears away and sat up straight. "How did you know I was here?"

Lily smiled sadly. "It would have been impossible to _not_ notice. I saw you running past us, crying, and then I saw Sirius walking into the Entrance Hall, also looking upset, so I sort of already guessed something must have happened."

"Do you know what…?" Mary asked before her voice broke again.

"Sirius told me," Lily said as she handed Mary a tissue.

"The whole story?"

"Ehm…" Lily said thoughtfully. "Well, he explained that you caught him and Cassidy together-"

"-Snogging."

"-Yes, she kissed him. But did you consider the possibility that things might… not are what they seem?"

Mary glared at her. "Do you think I'm blind? I _know_ what I saw, Lil."

"But it's just… He's so crazy about you. I… Oh Mare," Lily said when she noticed that these words were making her her cry again. "Maybe now is not the time to talk about this. Just go to bed and get some sleep."

"You're not coming with me?"

Lily shook her head. "I can't. There are still things that need to be taken care of. And then there's the debacle with the fireball…" She sighed. "I should get back to James."

"Where's Sirius?" Mary asked while Lily pulled her back to her feet.

"I told him to remain downstairs with James and let you cool off."

"Thanks Lil," Mary said gratefully before blowing her nose loudly.

Lily gave her a tight hug and after she had told her it was going to be alright, she whispered: "The password is Fanged Frisbee."

"Thanks." Mary turned to the Fat Lady and told her the correct password and walked inside. She noticed that Coco was sleeping on an armchair in front of the fire. She could use some company, so she walked to the cat and picked her up. Coco purred sleepily and mewed softly while Mary carefully carried her upstairs to the dormitory, ignoring the curious looks from the other students in the room.

Mary put Coco down on her bed and walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she was brushing her hair, she dared to look at her reflection in the mirror. "Typical," she muttered darkly as she was staring at her mad hair, albino red puffy eyes and mascara that had gotten smeared all over her face and made her look like a drowned panda. Didn't Sirius tell her she looked like a goddess earlier that night? The happiness of that moment already seemed lightyears away. Mary snorted while she was cleaning her face with a wad of cotton wool. If only he could see her now… Her smile froze on her face at the thought of him. That jerk didn't deserve to be in her thoughts any longer.

She poked her tongue at her reflection, chucked the wad against the mirror and trudged to her four poster bed to bury herself under the blankets. Coco crawled up near her feet and purred softly. Mary tried to fall asleep, but the hollowness in her heart made this almost impossible. She heard Lily and Brice come in about an hour after she had crawled into bed and pretended to be fast asleep, because she didn't feel like talking. However, she stayed awake long after her friends had fallen asleep and only managed to doze off when the first rays of Winter sunlight were already peeking through the window.

Despite the lack of sleep, Mary was sure about one thing. She did not want to see or listen to Sirius. In fact, she did not even want to look at him, talk about him or even hear about him. So in the remaining days of the holiday, she became a true master in avoiding him. Whenever she spotted him walking down the corridors, she took a detour. If he was studying in the Common Room, Mary studied in the library or her dormitory. This tactic seem to work pretty well, because Sirius did leave her alone. Or perhaps he simply had no idea where to find her. Lily and Brice told her repeatedly that she couldn´t avoid him forever, but Mary wasn't listening to them and they decided to not press the matter further. For now, at least.

However, there were occassions that it was simply impossible to hide from Sirius. At dinner for example, but at those times Mary made sure she was sitting at the other side of the table and always brought something along to read. But studying a boring book on Extraordinary Potions didn't prevent her from following the conversation, so she did hear Remus mentioning something about a couple of Death Eaters who had robbed Flourish and Botts.

"I wonder why," James wondered aloud. "What could be in there besides books?"

"I don't know," Remus said, loading some more roast potatoes on his plate. "The Daily Prophet article didn't say why."

"Maybe Voldemort wanted to catch up on his idiom of spells," Sirius shrugged.

Mary was shocked to hear the listless sound of his voice. She continued to stare at her page about Felix Felicis and pretended to look impassive, but was unable to actually absorb the words on the page. Mary always made sure that he didn't notice, but she did shoot a look at Sirius at least once a day and had been under the impression that he was acting cool as ever.

"Anyway," Sirius continued, standing up from the bench. "I should go."

"Detention again?" Peter asked, swallowing a bite of roast beef.

"Still the same one," Sirius replied.

Lily pursed her lips. "I still think McGonagall got it all wrong. You had no choice but to leave that dragon behind and bring Cassidy to safety."

"Yeah well," Sirius said, looking at Mary who was still pretending that he did not exist. "Right now I wish I would have let her rot."

James, Remus and Peter snorted, but Sirius did not answer to their laughter. "See ya," he said and walked off to McGonagall's office.

Mary now knew that Sirius was suffering just as much from their break up, but that still didn't make her change her mind about wanting to talk to him. Even after the holiday had come to an end, she still wasn't exchanging a single word with him. She continued to avoid him and this was working out rather well, until that one day when she was working on her Transfiguration essay in the library. She was sitting at a table near the back and was trying to decipher a rather difficult graphic table, when her nose caught a familiar musky scent. "That should be twelve equals X," an all too familiar sexy voice whispered near her ear.

Mary sighed, ignored the tingling sensation that was running down her spine, put her quill down and looked up at Sirius. "I would have figured that out on my own, thank you very much," she whispered back coolly.

Sirius sat down across the table and stared at her. "How long are you going to keep this up, Mary?"

"Keep what up?"

"Ignoring me like this. It's driving me insane."

"Well, you've got yourself to thank for that. Now if you excuse me, I want to finish this assignment before we have to go to Defense," she whispered shortly and reached for her quill. She stiffened when Sirius put his hand on hers. She had missed the touch of his hands more than anything, let alone his lips. In an attempt to suppress these inconvenient thoughts, Mary jerked her hand away.

"Mary…" Sirius whispered pleadingly. "Why won't you let me explain what really happened?"

"What's there to explain? I've seen it happening, haven't I?"

"But you're wrong!" Sirius had given up on whispering and was talking in a normal voice. "Seriously Mare, you have to listen to me. You're going to regret it if you don't and-"

They got interrupted by a furious looking Madam Pince. "Having a chat in my library? The nerve! Out, the both of you. Out, out, OUT!" she snapped while she pulled Sirius and Mary out of their chairs. Mary only had a few seconds to collect her books and parchment before Madam Pince threatened to hit her with a book. When they got out of the library, Mary was walking off at once when Sirius held her back. "Are you going to listen to me or not?"

Mary bit on her lip in an attempt to ignore the tingling feeling in her arms she felt when he had placed his hands on them before looking him straight into the eyes. "Did I, or did I not, witness you and Cassidy locking lips at New Year's Eve?"

"Eh... Technically yes, but-"

"-Then we are done talking," she cut him off and jerked her arm away.

"Oh bloody hell, come on, Mary!" Sirius yelled in frustration.

Mary wheeled around to shot him an angry look. "Didn't you once tell me you were about to screw up what we had?"

Sirius blinked as if he could not believe what she had just said. "That is… That was about something else and you know that."

Mary scowled and ignored his last comment. "Well, guess what? At New Years Eve, you just did!" she snapped before walking off to Defense.

Sirius did not hold her back again and when he finally arrived at the classroom a few minutes later, he didn't even look at Mary, but sat down next to Remus, absent-mindedly unpacking his bag before staring at the blackboard.

After Professor Zabini had 'amused' them with another one of this heroic and autobiographical stories on duelling a dangerous dark wizard, he decided that you couldn't practice duelling often enough. "Right," Zabini said after putting a few tables and seats aside. "Miss Evans, if you could step forward and lets see… Ah, Mr. Black, you too, please."

Lily and Sirius – reluctantly – walked to the front of the classroom and took their positions. "Only non-verbal spells and let's keep it as friendly as possible," Zabini reminded them.

Sirius – being the better dualist – normally would have beaten Lily with his eyes closed, but today he wasn't paying attention and she beat him over and over again. When he had zoomed backwards through the air against the wall for the fourth time in a row, Zabini decided to put an end to this embarassing display. "Alright, that's enough. Miss Evans, you have done well today, ten points to Gryffindor. Mr. Black," the Professor said with a concerned look at Sirius, "Not your usual form, I'm afraid. It seems that your head is in a entirely different place."

Sirius looked straight at Mary for a moment, who instantly lowered her gaze to the table. "You can say that again."

Zabini didn't seem to notice and gave Sirius a comforting pat on the shoulder. "We all have off days, Mr. Black, but remember that something like this happening when you're duelling a dark wizard could very well be the end of you."

Whether it was his intention or not, ever since their last encounter, Sirius left Mary alone. He no longer approached her in distant corridors and didn't try to talk to her anymore. It seemed that he had finally accepted that their relationship was over. Mary wasn't sure if she was too happy about this development. She knew that she had told Lily and Brice countless times about wishing that Sirius would leave her alone, but now that he had, she wasn't so sure if she liked it a lot. The fact that he gave up on trying to win her back made their break up more definite, or so it seemed. Mary talked about this to Lily and Brice a few weeks later while they were walking from the courtyard to the Great Hall. "I just don't know what I want and it's so frustrating," she said miserably.

"I still think you should let him tell his side of the story," Lily shrugged.

Mary sighed. "Well, I don't want that. Seeing him kissing that shrew was bad enough. I don't want to hear that story again."

"Well, at least you would have his attention again if you decide to talk things through. Isn't that what you want?" Brice asked.

Mary groaned. "I don't know! It's all so confusing and I… Oh no…"

Cassidy and her friends were walking straight towards them.

"What does she want?" Lily asked suspiciously.

"So Mary," Cassidy said loudly as soon as she was within earshot. "I am _so_ sorry to hear about your break up."

Mary grinded her teeth, but managed to stay calm. "What do you want from me, Cassidy?" she asked coolly.

"Just to condolence you with the end of your short-lived relationship with Sirius. I did warn you about this, you know."

"No, you didn't," Mary replied. "All you did was telling me to enjoy my time as his flavour of the month."

Cassidy gave a nasty chuckle. "Oh yeah, how could I forget! I said that if I wasn't going to have him, no one would, right?"

"So it would seem," Mary said, her hands aching to reach for her wand.

"You know, I _never_ would have guessed it was that easy. Girl, you have some serious trust issues."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean that all I had to do to make you break up with him was to fake one little kiss."

"What?!"

"U-huh," Cassidy nodded. "And now it's too late," she added with a vile grin on her face. "See ya later!" she waved before she headed outside with her sniggering friends.

Mary didn't know how long she had been staring at Cassidy's back with her mouth hanging open as the words were slowly becoming clear in her head. She shot a confused look at Lily and Brice – who were looking just as stunned – before asking: "Did she just… Does this mean… What _does_ this mean?"

It was Lily who managed to get her voice back first. She laughed and gave her a pat on the back. "Well, looks like you owe someone one _hell_ of an apology."

End of Update


	33. Hard To Say I'm Sorry

**A/N: Next chapter. Enjoy and please R&R. –Mara-**

**Chapter Thirty-Three**

Mary couldn't reply at first. While she was watching Cassidy disappear out of sight through a door leading to the courtyard, she tried to comprehend the meaning of her vicious words. Did she actually just tell her she had faked that kiss? Because if _that_ were the case, she had been wrong about the whole thing. What's more: not only had she jumped to the wrong conclusion, she had been treating Sirius in a _horrible_ way. Suddenly, like a tape recording in her head, Mary could hear her own shrill voice resounding: _"Didn't you once told me you were about to screw up what we had? Guess what, at New Year's Eve, you just did!"_

Mary's insides squirmed. She knew exactly what Sirius meant when he told her about being afraid to drive people away that day in the stables at her parents' estate; that certainly had nothing to do with infidelity. She was starting to feel nauseated because of her awful behaviour and the effect her words might have had on Sirius. Mary closed her eyes and clamped her hands to her stomach as she tried to remain calm. She only noticed that Lily had been talking to her when her friend gave her a friendly push. "What?"

Lily laughed. "Wow, where have you been with your head? I was saying that this is good news, Sirius hasn't cheated on you. However, like I said, you owe him a huge apology."

Mary shot her a worried look. "I doubt "huge" will be enough. You know how proud he is and I've been behaving like a total hag."

Lily shrugged. "True, but he's also crazy about you. He'll forgive you, don't worry. Just go to him and…"

She suddenly got distracted by Brice who had started to giggle like a lunatic in love. Her tittering was slowly turning into an uncontrollable fit of laughter. Mary and Lily exchanged confused glances before turning their attention back to a madly cackling Brice who was leaning back against the statue of Bodrig the Boss-Eyed in an attempt to remain on her feet. "Eh Brice, what…" Mary started hesitantly, but her friend was still laughing hysterically and unable to speak.

After another moment she managed to calm down just enough to say: "Phew." She coughed and wiped some tears from the corner of her eyes. "Sorry about that, but I only just realized what happened here."

Mary glared at her. "If you think that is hilarious, you're mad, and... and mean!"

"Oh, keep your robes on, Mary. This actually _is_ really funny."

"And why is that?"

"Because Cassidy is a total cow!"

"There I respectfully disagree," Mary replied, starting to feel annoyed. How could Brice be laughing about something that was making her feel this awful?

She rolled her eyes. "Just use your brain. Seriously, that girl is even more dense than I already thought."

Lily chuckled. "I just remembered something. Didn't James and Sirius once made Cassidy believe that if you put lacewing flies, dandelions and wild blackberry juice in a flower pot and let it ripen over two full moons, a galleon tree would grow from it?"

Brice burst out laughing again and even Mary couldn't suppress a grin. "She bought that?"

Lily nodded with twinkling eyes. "I've watched her dragging that pot along for over a month. It was hilarious. I was hanging out with Sirius when she told him that her plant wasn't growing properly. And he replied in a deadly serious tone that all she had to do was to add a few drops of Exploding Fluid and watch the effects closely. Which she did, that silly girl… Apparently it took Madam Pomfrey over a day to put back her nose in place."

Brice, still chuckling, shook her head. "Unbelievable. And also quite predictable. However, that was not what I meant."

"What was so funny, then?" Mary asked, sitting down on a stone bench to stretch her legs.

"Think! First, Cassidy threatens you to destroy your relationship with Sirius. Then, she manages to break you guys up by faking a kiss. Considering how close the two of you were, or are, that alone is worth an award. Either way, she succeeds, because you broke it off and she wins. And _what_ does that cow do? Instead of hitting on Sirius or at least keep her mouth shut about the whole thing, she actually – proudly! – tells you that the whole thing was a sham! Does that make you the biggest imbecile of Hogwarts? Yes, I believe it does."

"It certainly wasn't the most clever thing to do, I give you that," Mary said, rubbing her forehead.

"Maybe her conscience was kicking in," Lily suggested.

Brice scowled. "If it isn't Miss Evans to always see the best in people."

Lily lifted an eyebrow. "It could happen."

"Yeah, in Utopia," Brice said sarcastically before looking at Mary. "What are you still doing here?"

"I don't know…" Mary said miserably while pushing around a pebble on the floor with the nose of her shoe.

"What do you mean, "maybe"?"

When she shrugged and said nothing, Lily sighed. "Mary finds it difficult to apologize."

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do," Lily persisted as she exchanged an amused look with Brice.

Mary shot her an annoyed look. "I find it hard to admit that I've been _wrong_. That is something entirely different."

"How is that different?"

"It…. It's because you… It… It just is," Mary finished dully.

"Well," Brice said wisely while using her wand to clean up some bird droppings on Bodrig the Boss-Eyed. "Whether it's apologizing or admitting you've jumped to the wrong conclusion, if you want Sirius back, you have got to do something."

"I know that," Mary sighed. "I just feel bad about the things I've said."

"So tell him that, Mare," Lily said as she sat down next to her. "Sirius may be angry and he has every right to be, but he also knows how that fake kiss must have looked to you."

Mary nodded slowly. "That's true. Alright, I'm going to fix what needs to be fixed. Are you guys coming with me to the Common Room?"

"No, Brice and were going to tackle that Defense assignment on Inferi. That is if you're still up for it?" Lily asked, looking up at Brice.

"Sure," she said. "Good luck, Mary and remember, if he doesn't forgive you for something as silly as this, you're better off without him."

Mary smiled gratefully and got up from the bench. She slowly climbed the stairs to the Common Room, feeling more nervous with every step she took. Something – perhaps female intuition – was telling her that the upcoming chat with Sirius was not going to be easy. She tried to postpone that moment of walking towards the Lady as long as possible, so for once she wasn't annoyed to ran in on Peeves on the way. He chased her along several corridors while he kept chucking silver spoons at her from a bucket until she managed to shake him off by sneaking through a secret passageway on the fourth floor.

When Mary had finally reached the corridor to the Common Room, she wavered in front of the portrait. She fiddled with the hem of her sleeves, literally gathering the courage to walk inside. "Oh come on," she thought angrily to herself. "It's _Sirius_ you're about to face, not bloody Voldemort, so get your act together."

"Fanged Frisbee," she called clearly and when the portrait opened, she shook her hair back and walked into the Common Room with her head up high. There were many Gryffindors in the room, but only one of them was a seventh year student. And this wasn't Sirius, but Remus, who was sitting at the table to study a magazine article on the importance of Kappa's inhabiting small ponds.

"Hi Remus," she said as she sat down next to him. "Interesting article?"

He looked up and smiled. "Hey Mary, I never saw you coming in. Yeah, it's a fascinating piece. Apparently Kappa's are a crucial factor in preserving the right ecosphere in ponds."

"Fascinating," Mary said indifferently. "Do you know where Sirius is?"

"Quidditch practice. Why, do you want to talk to him?"

"Yeah, sort of," she replied, thinking about the major apology she was owing Sirius.

"Well, they have been out for a while now. I suppose their practice ends soon enough," Remus said kindly as he put the article aside. "Is there anything you want to talk about?"

"No," she answered a little too quickly. When Remus arched an eyebrow and gave her a look, she sighed. "Yeah, actually there is. I've only just found out that Cassidy faked that kiss with Sirius."

"Right. Well, that makes sense," he said matter-of-factly.

"You're not surprised?" Mary asked.

Remus laughed. "Do you actually believe that Sirius would get it into his thick head to cheat on you? And with Cassidy, of all people?"

"Eh…" she said, looking confused, which made him laugh even more. "Oh Mary, sometimes you amaze me with your misplaced insecurity."

Mary grumbled. "Yeah yeah I was wrong, I get it. But it _did_ look like they were snogging from my point of view."

"Yes, but if you would have let Sirius explain…"

She rolled her eyes. "I preferred hitting and yelling at him instead. Stupid, I know. Are the "bashing Mary"-minutes over by now?"

"I will let it slide this time, but if you break my friend's heart one more time…" Remus said in a teasingly stern voice and Mary gave him a friendly punch on his shoulder. "Where are Lily and Brice?" he asked.

"Library. Why do you ask?"

Remus shrugged. "No reason."

Mary shot him a piercing look. "Have you talked to Brice lately?"

"Not really, why?"

"Because I've noticed that there's something going between you."

"Oh." Remus shrugged in an indifferent way, but his reddening cheeks were giving him away. "Ehm well, I like her, if that's what you mean…"

Mary smiled. "But…?" she said encouragingly.

Remus looked up for a brief moment and she perceived a certain acridity and insecurity in his eyes. He sighed and stared at the floor before mumbling: "Look, I have feelings for her but obviously… It cannot happen."

Mary frowned. "And why is that?"

Remus looked at her in surprise. "Isn't that as clear as plain day-light? Because of what I am, of course."

She stared at him. "_That's_ what you are worrying about? Brice has had a crush on you for months. She doesn't care about your monthly fluffiness."

He smiled wryly. "Maybe she doesn't, but her mother will. Because of her aunt, remember?"

Mary snorted. "Oh Remus, I can't even remember the last time Brice cared about what other people think."

"But her mother…"

"Remus, I have - or had actually - a mother-in-law whom I've never met, but she has already sent me a death wish by owl. My brother-in-law, the ever lovely Regulus, has threatened to haunt and kill me about six times, and counting. It's impossible to please everyone with who you are, at least in this crazy world we're living in. And when it comes to you, we all know what a wonderful guy you are and your… problem isn't going to change anything."

"Thanks," Remus said. "But my life is too unpredictable… Too dangerous. By the way, is Sirius aware of those threats?"

"No, and he doesn't need to know. Anyway, don't you think it's for Brice to decide whether or not it's too dangerous to be with you?"

Remus sighed. "I need more time."

"Then take it, but don't shut her out of your life. She's already wondering what is wrong with her," Mary said as she stood up. "Listen, my nerves - or maybe it's just guilt - are killing me. I need go to the Quidditch field now and set things right."

"Yeah, I know" Remus said. "But thanks for… you know."

"You're welcome. Do you know if Sirius is still ehm... angry with me?"

"Yes," Remus said bluntly before smiling when he saw the shocked look on her face. "But he's also missing you more than anything. He'll forgive you, don't worry."

Mary nodded, not feeling all that reassured by what he had saide, before walking out of the Common Room. On the way down she thought about Remus and Brice. She wondered if she should mention any of this conversation to her friend, but she decided that would be highly immoral. Remus told her this in private and she should keep it that way, until he had made up his mind. All she hoped was that Remus would think about what she told him and that he would start talking to Brice again.

When Mary got outside, she immediately noticed how cold it was. She quickly tightened her scarf and buried her nose in it to prevent the icy wind from freezing her face. Mary sprinted to the Quidditch field as quickly as possible and was slightly out of breath when she finally got there, only to realize that the field was completely deserted. "Apparently they're already done," she thought to herself and decided to walk to the dressing rooms on the other side of the field.

Mary hesitated for a moment when she put her hand on the door-handle of the building. It was more than tempting to forget about the whole thing, turn around to run away and try again another time. Right when she had turned around and was about to walk off, she heard someone say: "Mary, what are you doing here?"

James was standing in the door-opening with his bag hanging on his shoulder. His jet black messy hair was wet, and for once it was flat and did not stand out in every direction.

"Hi James," she said timidly. "I was just ehm… admiring the scenery."

"What?" he frowned before putting one and two together. "Oh. He's still in there."

"Right." Mary walked forward, but hesitantly. When she was passing James, she looked sideways at him and asked uncertainly. "Is he still angry?"

He laughed. "Padfoot just spent an hour aiming his frustration on Bludgers. I think he's pretty done with being enraged for the moment. Go on, it'll be fine," he said encouragingly as he gently pushed her forward into a corridor that was leading to the boy's dressing-room. "Third door on your left," he called after her.

Mary smiled back weakly and walked to the right door. She knocked twice. When she heard Sirius call "Yeah, come in", she took a deep breath and opened the door.

He was currently putting his clothes in his bag and didn't realize it was Mary who was standing in the door-opening. "What did you forget this time, Prongs?" he joked and when Mary didn't answer and he looked up and saw her, a mildly surprised frown crossed his face. "What are you doing here?" he asked in a cool, but not entirely unkind voice.

"I eh… wanted to talk to you," Mary said nervously.

"Oh," Sirius said. "About what?"

"Is it okay for me to come in?"

He didn't answer but nodded while he continued to clean up his clothes, so Mary stepped inside and walked to the corner where Sirius was standing, but she made sure to remain at a safe distance. She cleared her throat and said quietly: "I ran into Cassidy this afternoon."

"U-huh," Sirius nodded, refusing to look at her while putting his bat back into his locker.

"She eh… Well, she basically said something stupid that started me thinking."

Still no response, but she hadn't expected it to be that easy and continued her speech bravely. "Turns out she… Are you going to look at me at all?"

Sirius chucked his battered gloves into his locker with more gusto than necessary and leaned his head against the locker door for a moment before he finally turned and looked at her. His wet hair was partly dangling in front of his intense grey eyes. It was making him look so irresistible that Mary instantly started to stutter, although she made sure she looked him straight into the eye when she said: "I-It seems that she t-tricked you after all. I jumped to the wrong conclusion and I'm…" She swallowed with difficulty. "I am sorry."

Sirius stared at her for a moment. "Took you long enough," he muttered after another pause before slamming the locker door shut with a loud bang.

Mary crossed her arms. "But you have to agree it did look suspicious from where I was standing."

He frowned. "That may be, but you never gave me a chance to explain. You automatically believed that I cheated on you, so obviously you don't trust me at all. What do you expect from me now?"

Mary's throat was closing up rapidly and she bit her lip. "I know," she said quietly. "I was wrong and I… I've said horrible things to you…" Her voice broke. She clapped her hands to her face and tried to steady her breathing and remain calm, but failed miserably. For a moment nothing could be heard but her wavering sobs, but then she suddenly felt Sirius's arms around her. She instantly wrapped her arms around his neck and cried even louder. He said nothing, but held her close and softly told her to calm down, but Mary could sense there was still an awkward distance between them, which wasn't exactly making her feel any better.

"Look," Sirius said eventually as he reached for her hand and made her sit down on one of the benches and sat down across her. "I'll be the last one to judge you because you jumped to the wrong conclusion. I know perfectly well how it must have looked to you. What has been bothering me over the last days is that you don't seem to trust me."

"I do trust you," Mary said in an upset voice.

Sirius arched an eyebrow, but ignored her retort and said: "Relationships are built on trust, Mare, and no matter how crazy I am about you, if you're not able to give me that, then I don't know what… What we have left."

Mary swallowed audibly and tried to get rid of that annoying lump in her throat. "Look, you have to understand that it wasn't easy for me to get over my… aversion of your history."

Sirius shrugged. "That history is part of who I am now. I cannot erase that. Not that I would want to anyway."

Mary gave him a half-smile through her tears. "For years I've watched you wear out more girls than socks and I guess part of me always expected you to also swop me for someone else sooner than later. And at the party, when I was trying to get outside as soon as possible to help you take care of that dragon and saw you there, with _her_, something just snapped."

"Of course it did," Sirius said, "But you have to give me some credit. I would be out of my mind to cheat on you in the first place and with Cassidy… That is just a plain insult," he added with a grin.

Mary wondered if that grin could mean that things were going to be alright after all, but she didn't dare ask him. Instead, she joked: "Yeah well to me, you cheating with Cassidy was more than an insult. I mean, you could have at least snatched Joanna from Snape or hooked up with that exotic fifth year Ravenclaw, what's her name again? Oh, Aimee Everett."

"I don't want Joanna or Aimee. I want you."

Mary met his eyes and for the first time in weeks, a true smile was actually breaking through her tears and she sniffed. "Does that mean we're still?… You know…"

"Oh Mare," Sirius said as he lifted her chin and slowly kissed the tears from her cheeks. "I just wondered what was taking you so long," he whispered in her ear before finally kissing her for real.

Mary didn't know how long they had been spending "making up"-time on that bench, but even though it seemed like only a few minutes, when Sirius finally checked his watch, he jumped up: "Crap, it's nearly seven PM. We have to hurry or we'll be late for supper."

He quickly swung his bag over his shoulder and pulled Mary along with him. They sprinted back to school through the snow and both of them were out of breath (not to mention frozen) when they finally reached the Great Hall. They spotted their friends sitting at the Gryffindor table and hurried over to them.

"About bloody time," James said with twinkling eyes when they had sat down next to Peter. "Everything alright again, then?"

"Better than ever," Sirius said grinning as he put an arm around Mary to hug her. She beamed at her friends for a moment and then noticed that Remus was sitting next to Brice. He grinned and gave her a significant wink. Mary smiled back and - hoping that she might not only fixed her own relationship today but had also given Remus the essential push to get closer to Brice – started to eat her steak and salad happily.

End of Update


	34. Glory Days

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, guys! I'm glad you're all happy that they got back together again. Who knows what I would have done if you all started cheering for a Sirius/Lily-ship or something. Not that I really have something against that ship in general, but it's never going to happen in this story.**

**Anyway, there will be about Brice and Remus soon, but this chapter focuses on Sirius and Mary and the next ehm… step they make in their relationship. And I guess you all know what that means, haha. A little smut near the end, but not too much. This is a T-rated fic after all.**

**Enjoy and R&R! –Mara.**

**Chapter Thirty-Four:**

Over the next two months Sirius and Mary were very happy together, but they couldn't spend much together due to their overloaded schedule. The NEWTS were drawing closer every day and the Professors didn't let a day go by without remembering them of the importance of their final exams at Hogwarts. McGonagall had chanted her speech so many times already that most of the seventh year students could (and probably did) effortlessly repeat the words and the Professor's imperative expression in their sleep.

Nevertheless, they all realized that the Professors had a point, so these months everyone – even Sirius and James – spent more time studying than ever before. January passed, February became March and besides those rare homework free Hogsmeade weekends or Quidditch matches, the seventh year students were condemned to spend most of their time staring at their books in the library or Common Room. Mary only had a few highlights in a week: aside from spending time with Sirius, she amused herself best whenever she encountered Cassidy.

Mary hadn't actually confronted her about (eventually failing to) breaking her and Sirius up, but she did have her own ways to make her pay. Every Tuesday and Wednesday, when Mary and her friends were hanging out in the courtyard on their morning break, Cassidy and her friends passed them on their way to the Great Hall. And every single time, Mary – usually assisted by Brice – used the same "banana prank". It never bored her, she was still laughing now - two whole months after Cassidy had betrayed her -, but that was mostly because she still hadn't found out that the perpetrator was Mary.

Most of the other students _did_ know what was going on; Sirius and the rest had witnessed the prank on more than one occasion, but most of them also appreciated that Mary was making a fool out of Cassidy. Jill, a fifth year Gryffindor girl she didn't even know that well, told her that Cassidy had also tried to break up her and her boyfriend Jason at one time and, although Jason turned her down and he and Jill were still together, she couldn't agree more that someone needed to teach Cassidy a lesson.

On a particular rainy Wednesday in March, Mary and the others were sheltering in one of the porches on the courtyard. Sirius, Peter, James and Lily were (besides occasionally sneezing) talking about the sneezewort they were currently replanting in Herbology. Remus was examining Mary's hand who had been bitten by the venomous tentacula when she wasn't paying attention. "It doesn't look that bad to me," he said. "But you might want to visit Madam Pomfrey after all, just to be sure-"

"Bananarama!" Brice suddenly hissed into her ear.

"Bananarama" was code for the moment when Cassidy was passing by. Mary looked at Brice and followed her friend's gaze. And there she was, just crossing the courtyard with her friends. Mary quickly reached for her wand and took careful aim. She waited patiently for the opportune moment - right when Cassidy was walking up the stairs – and thought _cubui dilibro_, so that a banana peel appeared on the stairs which made her slip and land right on her butt.

Mary and Brice sniggered as they were watching the very same scene unfold that they had been witnessing over the last two months. Cassidy - looking embarrassed as she got pointed and laughed at by several students – was being pulled up by a friend and hurried back into the castle as fast as she could. "She must be thinking that she's under the curse of evil banana's or something," Brice grinned maliciously and Mary snorted.

"Another direct hit! Well done, Mary," Jill said, grinning, and she winked at them as she passed by. "Once again, you're more than welcome, Jill," Mary beamed back.

The others had turned around at the sound of the commotion and when Lily noticed that Mary had pulled the same prank _again_, she rolled her eyes and muttered: "Not again."

Mary shrugged. "There's a part of me that hopes that eventually does realize that _I'm_ the one who's doing this to her. If that moment ever comes, I'll hope that she challenges me into a duel. Then I could really finish her off."

The Marauders and Brice laughed, but Lily scowled. "You know, I should be giving you a detention for this."

"Then give me one. It's not going to change my determination to make Cassidy believe that something stupid like a banana curse actually exists. I mean, it worked with that galleon tree story…"

Sirius shot her an amused look. "Mare, how long have you been doing this? Like... Two months?"

"Yep."

"And you're not even remotely becoming bored of pulling the same joke over and over again?"

"Nope."

He chuckled appreciatively, hugged her close and kissed the tip of her nose. "Sounds like the true girlfriend of a proud Marauder."

Mary laughed. "I suppose this is probably your influence."

Lily sighed. "Seriously Mare, one of these days Cassidy will get hurt. You've had your fun. Just let it go."

Mary thought about it for a moment before deciding that Lily was having a point. "Alright, you win. I won't do it again, I promise."

"Thanks," Lily said, looking relieved, but Brice seemed to be disappointed. "No more bananarama?" she pouted.

They all laughed. "I'm sure we can come up with a good alternative," Remus joked while handing Brice her bag.

"Sure," Sirius grinned. "Let's see... How about… applesnapple?"

"Or peachyweachy?" James chimed in.

"Papayalaya?" Peter suggested.

Brice rolled her eyes. "That is _so_ not the same as bananarama. Oh, forget about it; this prank has died forever. Come on, we should be heading to Defense class."

Mary groaned. Normally she would have been looking forward to Defense against the Dark Arts, but lately Professor Zabini had been bombarding her with questions about whether or not she had decided to become an Auror. Which she hadn't. It was still tempting to choose the Auror Program, because then she would be following the same classes as James and most importantly, Sirius. Mary knew that they were going to have so much fun in class. Then again, with the way things were at this point, they would stay together after Hogwarts and spend more than enough time together anyway. And even although an Auror career sounded exciting, a little voice in her head told her that she would be more happy as a Healer, just what she had always wanted to become.

Surprisingly, when she told Sirius about this while they were studying Charms in the Common Room on a Friday night, he said that he wouldn't mind _at all_ if Mary chose to become a Healer instead of an Auror. "I don't think I could ever be at peace if you had such a dangerous profession. Healing sounds like a much safer job to me."

"But you do still want to become an Auror, right?" Mary asked.

"Yes, and it would be impossible for me to concentrate properly if we were working together. I'd be constantly focusing on protecting you instead of capturing dark wizards."

She slightly narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm not sure if I should take this as a compliment because you're so protective of me or as an insult because you think that I cannot take care of myself."

He laughed. "I've seen you duelling and let's just say that I'm feeling sorry for any dark wizard who will ever cross your path. Does that answer your question?"

Mary smiled and turned her attention back to her page on navigating charms. Another thirty minutes later, she had to stifle a yawn and closed her book with a thud. "I don't know about you, but I'm going to bed," she said, tiredly rubbing her eyes.

Sirius had also just put his books away and stretched. "Yeah, I think I've done enough studying for one day. More like a month, actually", he added darkly.

When Mary got up, Sirius reached for her and pulled her onto his lap. He hugged her close and muttered: "I wish we wouldn't have to sleep apart."

She kissed him and fondled his hair. "We don't have to, you know."

Sirius snorted. "Yeah sure. Not if you don't mind a couple of barbaric roommates. And I'm not even talking about the snoring."

"I'm not talking about your dormitory."

"What?"

"I'm just saying… There is another way."

"But," Sirius said looking confused. "It's impossible for me to get to the top your dormitory, you know that."

Mary smiled mysteriously. "Not necessarily."

Sirius looked intrigued. "What do you mean?"

"What if I told you that there _is_ a way?"

He lifted an eyebrow and joked in a low voice: "Then I'd be saying: what would that be, Miss Woods?"

She snorted. "This is a "show, not tell"-scenario if there ever was one. But we'll have to wait until everyone has gone to bed."

Sirius frowned. "Is it such a big secret?"

"I'm afraid so, and it has to stay that way."

Sirius tried to make Mary share the secret for another fifteen minutes before he got bored and asked her to play a game of wizard's chess until the coast was clear. She agreed but only reluctantly; the game was far too violent for her liking and whenever she did play, she hardly ever won. Tonight was no exception. Sirius beat her twice and the last time his queen beat up one of Mary's knights so badly that it ran off the board and tried to jump out of the tower window.

Finally the last students had gone up to their dormitories and Sirius and Mary were the only students left in the room. He shot her an impatient look. "So now you're going to tell me what this is about?"

Mary, who had just managed to get hold of her fleeing knight and was putting the chess piece back into the box, chuckled. "You're far too curious for your own good," she said teasingly. "Perhaps I should say nothing after all, so that you can… Aaaaah Sirius! Put me down!"

Sirius had lifted her up and swung her over his shoulder like a large sack of potatoes. Mary giggled and playfully hit him on the back as she begged him to let her go, but he merely laughed and freely carried her over to the other end of the room where he put her down at the beginning of the stairs. "What is it?"

"Alright then, I'll show you." She took his hand and stepped back on the stairs, expecting him to follow her example, which he didn't. Instead he looked at her feet and frowned. "What are you doing?"

"Taking you upstairs with me," Mary said as she tried to pull him up the stairs.

"Hang on," Sirius said. "I thought you were going to suggest taking a slightly dangerous but cool detour which basically comes down to climbing into your dormitory window from outside."

"Sure, that could work too… If you want to commit suicide, stupid! No, all you're going to have to do is trust me. Hold my hand and follow me."

"But… What about the wailing claxon and the slide?"

Mary said nothing but merely smiled, took Sirius's hand and carefully guided him onto the first step. Nothing happened. This was a slight relief for her as well, since she nor Lily (she wasn't sure about Brice) had ever tried this with a guy for real before. She carefully climbed up another step and, slowly putting one foot after the other, she and Sirius reached the top of the stairs. When they got there, he looked down with a stunned look on his face. "How is this even possible?" he managed to splutter eventually.

"Brice's great-great-great-grandmother and her fiancé found out by accident. It has been a popular family secret ever since. Apparently as long as a guy hold hands with his girlfriend, he can get into this dormitory after all. Although I never knew for sure if it would work. I guess it did," Mary whispered, also feeling a little confused.

"Right," Sirius muttered. "So now that we are here… Is it okay to let go of each other's hands?"

Mary stared down at their intertwined hands and frowned. "Eh… I really wouldn't know. But I don't think we take the risk."

"Good point," Sirius whispered and he softly squeezed her hand.

Mary pulled him along and when they quietly entered her dormitory, she noticed that Lily and Brice were already asleep. They sneaked into the bathroom, brushed their teeth and tiptoed back across the room to Mary's bed near the window before flopping down as silently as they could. Mary quickly closed the hangings of her four-poster bed and, thinking of Lily and Brice, couldn't help but giving a loud snort.

Sirius looked alarmed. "Shhh, what are you doing? You'll wake them!" he hissed.

Mary, still giggling, shook her head. "What if one of them wakes up and notices you're here?"

"Love, you already closed the hangings."

"Sirius, they still have ears, you know."

"Ah," Sirius grinned confidently. "There is an easy remedy when it comes to that. Watch and learn." He reached for his robes and pulled out his wand, twirled it in a complicated-looking way and muttered: "_Amplexus Silencio_."

Mary frowned. "I know you used a silencing spell, but what exactly did you make soundless?"

Sirius, who had put his wand back into his robe, laughed in his normal loud voice and before she could have usherer him to lower his voice, he said: "The environment."

"Huh?"

"I excluded us, or this area to be more specific, from the outer world. Meaning that we won't hear them and we cannot be heard."

"Oh, that's pretty cool."

Sirius shrugged. "It looks like a complicated move, but it really isn't. Once you've practized it a few times, it becomes fairly easy."

Mary lifted an eyebrow. "And how many times have you used this spell?"

"Loads. I lost count years ago."

She snorted. "Yeah yeah, I get it. Too many female conquests on your impressive list to keep track of, I know."

Sirius burst out laughing and Mary joined him, although she did feel a stab of jealousy when she thought of all the girls who had been with him before her.

"Hardly," a sniggering Sirius managed to say eventually. "I use it mostly to block out Peter's snores. You should hear him, sometimes I think he's running a freaking lumberyard on his own."

Mary giggled. "I'm glad that Lily and Brice don't snore. Well, sometimes Brice talks in her sleep, but that isn't annoying, just funny." She yawned. "I'm beat. Let's get some sleep."

"Alright. It's a good thing it's Saturday tomorrow, so we can sleep in. Although I still have that Quidditch match at noon, of course," Sirius reminded her while he climbed into bed and, as Mary joined him, put his arms around her.

"I suppose getting up at nine should be early enough," Mary said as she placed her head on his shoulder.

"Hmmm," he mumbled and kissed her on the forehead before saying: "I love being with you. That time at your parents house already seems such a long time ago. I've missed this."

Mary smiled and muttered "Me too. Night…" while reaching for Sirius's hand and lacing her fingers through his, just as she had done on that first night at their parents house. Over the next ten minutes she thought about all the things that had happened between them over the last months: those lovely first weeks of their relationship, celebrating New Year's Eve together, breaking up soon after that, Cassidy's confession, her emotional apology, them making up and being blissfully happy ever since…

Suddenly out of nowhere, Mary experienced an all-embracing love for him that was filling her up completely. It was the realization of a feeling that clearly told her that Sirius was and would always be the most important person in her life. She had almost opened her mouth to say that she loved him when she changed her mind and reached up to give him a kiss.

Sirius wasn't asleep yet and responded quickly. He turned over, pulled her closer so that he was on lying right on top of her and deepened their kiss. Mary had no choice but to respond; she couldn't deny or control the way her body was responding to his touch and kisses and she didn't want to; she was crying out yes with all her heart. Her skin seemed to burn wherever he had touched or kissed her, and her touch seemed to have the same effect on him.

But despite the fact that she was enjoying this a lot, she was also feeling absolutely terrified. This was all new to her; her heart was pounding over a hundred and fifty beats a minute, her blood was rushing through her veins and, although the emotional part of the brain was doing most of the thinking at the moment, there was one consistent thought in her mind: what if she was doing this wrong?

Sirius was still kissing and caressing her and when he was placing both her hands over her head and laced his fingers through hers, he kissed her neck. "Merlin, I want you," he said hoarsely.

She gave him a passionate kiss in return before whispering: "Then take me."

He stopped for a moment to pull back and give her a questioning look. "Are you sure about this?"

Mary looked into his eyes and was once again mesmerized by the moonlight that got reflected in those infinite pools of grey before gently squeezing his hands and nodding slowly. "I-I think so, but I've… I've never…"

Sirius grinned confidently - a grin that could either be explained as a reassuring smile or an arrogant smirk but, considering how crazy in love she was, she chose to believe it was the first option – and whispered soothingly into her ear: "Don't worry, I have," making all her nerves and insecurities vanish in an instant.

End of Update


	35. Expecto Dalmatian

**A/N: Thanks for the comments everyone. I****'m glad you all liked that she slept with Sirius. About time too, I'd say… But then again, sleeping with Sirius Black. Who wouldn't like that?**

**Anyway, I dedicate the next update to all the reviewers. Enjoy!**

**Chapter ****Thirty-Five**

When Sirius opened his eyes the following morning, the first thought that ran through his head was: "Where am I?" And the second: "This isn't my bed." He drowsily ran a hand through his hair and then, as he looked sideways at a sleeping Mary who was lying next to him, it was all coming back to him. A broad smile crept over his face when he thought of last night. When he bent down to give her a soft kiss on her lips, she stirred slightly but continued to sleep peacefully.

Sirius shot a look across Mary to check the time: 7.03 AM. It was way too early to be heading downstairs for breakfast, so he let himself fall back to the pillow and was about to relax when his eyes shot open again. This could really become a problematic situation. What if Brice, or worse, Lily woke up and wouldn't be happy to see him in their dormitory? He knew that Lily was Mary's best friend, but she was also Head Girl and had the obligation to report any disregarding of the rules. And this was a violation if there ever was one. Sirius snorted when he visualised McGonagall's face if she should find out that he spent the night with Mary up here.

Nevertheless, it would be better to avoid an early encounter with Lily. Sirius climbed to the side of the bed as carefully as he could, not wanting to wake Mary up. He quickly put on his boxers and shirt, but when he was pulling his sweater over his head, he felt her arms around his waist. "Hey you," she mumbled in his ear.

He turned back and smiled. "Morning beautiful," he whispered softly and leaned in to kiss her.

When they broke apart, Mary looked at the alarm clock and groaned. "It's only 7 AM," she pouted while falling back to her pillow. "Why getting up so early?"

Sirius, who was still sitting on the edge of the bed, flopped back down next to her and smiled. "I thought it might be wise to head back dow safely while I still can."

Mary blinked and looked confused. She still had that sleepy look which made her even more irresistible to him. He reached out and gently tucked a lock of hair back behind her ear. "We broke several rules last night."

Mary stretched and shrugged. "So…?"

Sirius chuckled. "You're starting to become more like me every day."

"No, I'm not. I only break the rules that I think I should break."

"That's true. However, I think it would be better to keep this a secret for now. If the fact that the girl's dormitories are accessible for boys after all becomes widely known..."

Mary smiled. "I see what you mean."

He nodded and kissed her again before grinning: "Something only we know…"

It took another few minutes before Sirius could force himself to get out of bed. At 7.15 AM, he closed the door of Mary's dormitory behind him and ran back to the top of the stairs. He shot the stairs a doubtful look – it seemed more than plausible that the claxon and the slide would occur if he stepped on it without holding Mary's hand – before deciding it might work to slide down via the handrail. It did and he made a safe landing on the floor of the Common Room.

No one was down yet, so Sirius could easily cross the room and head up the stairs of his own dormitory without having to explain his abnormally early walk to anyone. It felt slightly surreal to be heading to his own cold bed when he had been with Mary all night. Sirius stopped in front of his dormitory and listened closely for a moment. He could hear Peter's snores from his side of the door and - deciding that the coast was clear - he opened the door and walked right into Remus who was just coming out of the bathroom.

His friend frowned at him. "Where did you come from?"

Sirius realized that he was looking rather suspicious with his robes hanging over his arm and wearing nothing more than a sweater and his boxers, but he managed to shake his hair back in a nonchalant way and shot Remus an amused look. "A lovely good morning to you too, Moony."

"Yeah, good morning," her replied. "But that was not an answer to my question."

Sirius shrugged and walked over to his four-poster bed where he sat down on the edge. "I felt like going for an early morning walk, is that so bad?"

Remus walked to his own bed, standing next to his, and shot the robes that Sirius was carrying in a bundle a suspicious look. "Weren't you with Mary last night?"

"Yes, we studied late. Why?"

"I was awake till midnight and I didn't see you come upstairs."

Sirius tried to look annoyed, but had a hard time trying to hide the foolish grin that appeared on his face whenever he remembered what had happened between him and Mary last night. He cleared his throat and said in a quasi insulted tone: "What are you implying here, Moony?"

Remus narrowed his eyes. "What do you think I am implying, Padfoot?"

"What, that I spent the night with Mary up in her dormitory?"

He snorted and Remus looked at him for a moment before he too chuckled and said: "Now that would be really far-fetched."

"Indeed," Sirius said, feeling relieved, before he decided to change the subject so that he could stop lying to his friend. "How are things with you and Brice?"

Remus, who was trying to find a missing shoe under his bed, came back up and shrugged. "Same as ever. Why?"

"Because you might want to hurry up a little there, mate. I saw that friend of Snivellus, Paul Murphy, checking her out the other day."

"But he's a _Slytherin_."

"Even so, you should make a move and fast. She's not gonna hold out forever, you know."

"But… You know how I-"

"I do, and you know what I think when it comes to that. You like her, she likes you; the least you could do is give it a try."

Remus sighed. "I know that I should, but… I just don't know how."

Sirius smiled. "There's nothing to it, because you already know that she likes you. Just ask her out."

"Yeah alright. Maybe I will…" Remus muttered and he smiled at him. "I'm just not as smooth with the girls as you are, that's all."

Sirius laughed. "I'm pretty sure Brice doesn't want a second Sirius, she wants you. Now, let's go wake the others and get some breakfast. I am starving!"

The four of them headed down to the Great Hall shortly after. While they were walking through the corridors, Remus pulled Sirius on his shirt and asked: "So what _did_ you do last night?"

Sirius chuckled. "You really don't want to know," he replied and quickly walked into the Great Hall, leaving a frowning Remus behind.

Mary, Lily and Brice were already there. James walked over to Lily and sat down beside her to kiss her good morning. Sirius sat down next to Mary, who was reading an article in the Daily Prophet on Fudge advising everyone to avoid running into Death Eaters at all times. He put an arm around her, gave her a kiss and whispered: "Long time no see."

Mary looked up and smiled. "Too long," she grinned before kissing him back.

Sirius gently kissed the tip of her nose before loading his plate with freshly baked bread, bacon and eggs. When he reached for a jug of pumpkin juice, his eyes met Lily's and from the way she was looking at him, he instantly knew that Mary had told her everything. She didn't look angry or annoyed – on the contrary - but Sirius also couldn't tell what she _was_ thinking. He leaned towards Mary. "I thought we were going to keep it a secret?"

She shot him a guilty look and blushed. "I know, but Lily was on to me. I just cannot keep anything from her."

Sirius chuckled. "I literally ran into Remus when I got back and had to answer some pretty tricky answers myself, but I managed. Anyway, how did Lily respond?"

"Honestly? Lil was more interested in that silencing spell you used than the fact that you were with me last night. And she was more than pleased to hear that the trick with the girls dormitory stairs _does_ work. If you ask me, she wants to try it out herself soon enough."

"I can't wait to try it again either."

"Shhh!" Mary hissed as she looked past Sirius and saw Peter, who was eyeing them curiously.

Sirius quickly focused on his food and joined James and Remus on discussing how big their chances were on winning the Quidditch Cup today. After breakfast, James called him and the other Gryffindor players and ordered them to get ready for the match against Slytherin. It was their final match of the season and – since they'd already beaten Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw – if they won today, they would win the Cup. If they lost, chances were it would be in fact Slytherin that would take the Cup home and the Gryffindors were more than determined to prevent that from happening. Either way, it was all depending on the match of today.

Quidditch matches against Slytherin were always more brutal than others and today was no exception. Bludgers flew everywhere and almost every player on both sides suffered minor injuries. Gryffindor seeker Andy Booker even took a bludger against the head, but he insisted on finishing the game. And even though he swayed a bit more on his broom than usual, he did manage to catch the Snitch right under Slytherin seeker Katrina Connolly's nose in the end.

The Quidditch pitch – and the Gryffindor grandstand in particular – exploded. Gryffindor House hadn't won the Cup in three years, so this was definitely a reason for a good celebration. After the team had been awarded the Cup and listened to Dumbledore's speech, they took a shower as quickly as possible so that they could join the celebration in the Gryffindor Tower.

When James and Sirius entered the Common Room, they had to work their way through the entire Gryffindor population who all wanted to congratulate them before they finally managed to get to the others who were standing in their usual spot. Remus and Peter took a quick trip to Hogsmeade and had made sure there was enough Butterbeer and candy around to celebrate the championship for hours.

As soon as Mary spotted Sirius, she put her butterbeer down on the table and ran towards him. She jumped straight into his arms and swung her legs around his waist. "You played wonderfully. I'm so proud of you!" she whispered into his ear before kissing his neck.

Sirius put her down gently and smiled. "I didn't do it all by myself, you know."

"There were more players on the field? I hadn't noticed at all," Mary laughed casually as she acciod another bottle of Butterbeer and handed it to him.

Sirius smiled and shot an amused look at James, who was currently trying to explain the purpose of a difficult Quidditch move to a bemused-looking Lily. "Oh dear, I suppose I should go and rescue her," Mary said when she had followed his gaze. She squeezed his hand softly, walked over to them and quickly put an end to their discussion by hugging and congratulating James.

"Hey," a beaming Remus suddenly said next to him. "Congrats mate, you guys totally rocked today."

"Thanks Moony," Sirius grinned back.

"Just so you know, I also eh… won something today."

"Did you now?" Sirius laughed. "Does this by any chance have anything to do with a certain miss McDonald?"

Remus stared at him, but was unable to suppress a grin. "How did you know?"

He smirked. "For one, we talked about it this morning and you usually do what you promised to do right away and two, I haven't seen Brice smile like that in months."

Remus looked over at Brice, who was currently trying to put as many sugarquills in her mouth as Peter – needless to say she failed - and grinned. "That happiness could also be explained as an ecstatic mood because Gryffindor won the Cup."

Sirius sipped his butterbeer and shot her another piercing look. "Impossible. That is the happy glow of a girl who's in love. Take that from an expert."

"Ah," Remus said. "And is this _expert_ ever going to tell me what happened between him and Mary last night?"

"Nope, but if you really are as clever as I think you are, you're going to figure it out sooner or later."

The party went on till well after midnight untill McGonagall barged in and ordered everyone to go to bed at once, which they did (everyone in his own bed), but reluctantly. The weather was damp and windy the next day, so they all stayed inside and concentrated on their everlasting pile of homework. While Sirius was helping Mary with her Potions essay, he noticed he had a lot of trouble with concentrating on his work. He kept kissing her and she let him while she did try to scribble some words down on the parchment, until she finally leaned back and sighed. "Sirius, how am I supposed to finish this when you keep distracting me like that?"

"Hey, that isn't fair," Sirius said faking a serious face. "How am I supposed to concentrate when you're here with me?"

Mary nodded, shooting him a quasi-serious look. "I see. Now what can we do about that?"

"Well, I can think of something, but that hasn't got much to do with books…"

Mary giggled and gave him a soft push. "Ha-ha, very funny. You know, I was thinking the other day… What's your Patronus?"

Sirius shot her a look, surprised about this sudden change of subject. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I know your Animagus form is a dog and I just wondered what your Patronus would look like."

"It's not a dog."

"What is it, then?"

"A bear."

"Ah," Mary smiled. "But you are kind of a bear-like dog, so that does fit."

Sirius shrugged and carefully wrapped lock of her hair around his finger. "I guess so. What's yours?"

"A dog."

Sirius lifted his eyebrows in surprise. "Are you serious?"

"No, you are."

He rolled his eyes at her. "That joke stopped being funny after third year."

She laughed. "True, but no: it's not like you. You know, not a scruffy type of dog."

"I'm not _that_ scruffy. What kind of dog is it?"

"A Dalmatian."

"I guess that does fit your personality. But one would certainly call it remarkable that you're dating someone who can transform into a dog and have a dog as a Patronus."

"One would call that fate."

Sirius smiled. "Fate it is. Come on Mare, lets finish this stupid essay so that we can go and relax on the couch."

They finished their homework over an hour later. When they dropped onto the couch near the fire and Sirius was putting his arms around Mary, he suddenly felt a wave of happiness wash over him. If what happened between them changed something, it had only made them more close than they already were. Day by day, he was slowly beginning to realize that Mary was becoming the most important person in his life. Once again the familiar feeling of affection and happiness washed over him and he suddenly knew that this could only mean one thing: he loved her. And Sirius really wanted to tell her that, but when and most of all, how, that was the question.

End of Update


	36. The Popular Kids

**A/N: Here's the next chapter. I've been meaning to ask you guys something… Part one of my story, the Hogwarts-part, is almost over. However, the full story is not. On the contrary… So my question is: should I continue adding the post-Hogwarts part to this thread or should I create a whole new story? Cause I know that some people aren't that interested in Marauder-stories that don't take place at Hogwarts. However, I'm sure there are many people who'd love to read on about the adventures of Mary and Sirius… So ****please let me know what you think!**

**Second, one of you asked if things will get really bad at one time? The answer is: yes, unfortunately. This story is meant to end in line with canon, meaning that James and Lily will die and that Sirius ends up in Azkaban… But there's a lot of happiness and action/adventure that takes place before the end, so you better keep on reading haha.**

**Third, I'll be going on a brief holiday tomorrow, so I won't be putting any new chapters up till next Friday or Saturday. Just so you know… **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one! –Mara**

**Chapter Thirty-Six:**

"That is all there is to it?" Lily asked incredulously.

"Yep," Mary nodded as she used her wand to highlight an important line on Imperturbable Charms in her book.

She was lying flat on her stomach in the grass and had put her book up against her bag. It was the end of April and today was the very first sunny day of the year. Mary, Lily and Brice had decided that if they were going to have to study on a day like this, they could at least combine the useful with the pleasant and study on the grounds. And so, the girls had been working on their studies in their usual spot under a large oak tree near the lake for the last few hours.

"So as long as we're holding hands-," Lily continued thoughtfully.

"You and James will be fine," Mary replied calmly before unwrapping a chocolate frog and biting its head off. "Sirius and I have tried it a few times now and nothing peculiar has ever occurred."

Lily snorted and flipped a page of her Transfiguration book before repositioning herself against the tree trunk. "I cannot wait to see James's face. Are you sure that Sirius didn't tell him about it?"

Mary shrugged and looked down at her Wizard card. "Ugh, not Paracelsus _again_. Anyway, I made him promise, but since I couldn't keep our first night together a secret for a day, I feel that I don't really have a say in this."

"I suppose so, but I'm still hoping that James doesn't have a clue. I want to surprise him."

"At least something is happening with you guys," Brice suddenly grumbled. She had been focusing on deciphering a complicated-looking Arithmancy assignment for the last hour and hadn't been talking much until now. "Me on the other hand... I'm still getting nowhere," she muttered while fiddling with the feather of her quill.

It didn't come as a surprise that Brice was talking about Remus. They had been on four dates, but he still hadn't made a serious move. And this – understandingly – was frustrating her a lot. Mary shot her friend a sympathetic look. "I'm sure he'll make the move eventually, Brice. He's just being shy."

"He's just being Remus, you mean," Lily observed.

Brice scowled. "I don't care if he's the bloody Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards! I don't know what I'm doing wrong here. I'm being sweet and understanding, I'm dressing up nicely, I'm sashaying in front of him; I even laugh at his jokes which - quite frankly - aren't always that funny. Seriously, I'm running out of ideas here."

"You could kiss him," Lily suggested.

Brice looked at her as if she had just asked her to dance and sing a song in front of the entire school. "Of course I cannot kiss him."

"Why not?"

"Because…" she spluttered. "That isn't… It's not… That just isn't how it is supposed to go."

Mary sniggered. "You mean you've got your relationship completely mapped out already, wedding and future kids included?"

"No, of course not!" Brice cried, looking flustered, before continuing in a much quieter voice. "At least not the kids part," which made the other girls laugh and even Brice chuckled before determinedly saying: "But I am _not_ going to kiss him first."

"In that case you're just going to have to be more patient," Lily concluded before pointing her wand at a passing frog and muttering _Ciris Papiliosis_. Her Cross-Species Switch Spell didn't succeed entirely, because although the frog was now having a butterfly head and a set of orange coloured wings, it still had the lower body of a frog. This became a serious problem when the butterfly part tried to fly off and had to drag its frog legs along with him, making the animal sway dangerously above the ground. "Wait," Lily cried as she jumped up quickly. "I can make it better, please come back!" she called while attempting to catch the poor animal.

"Ever heard of a Summoning Spell, Lil?" Mary asked as she stretched lazily and watched the spectacle with an amused look on her face.

Lily shot her an annoyed look before aiming her wand and opening her mouth, right when a male voice said "_Accio_", causing the butterflied frog to fly right into the hands of… James. "Well well, what have we got here, boys?" he said, sniggering as he showed the animal to the other guys.

"Looks like a Cross-Species Transformation gone bad," Sirius concluded after taking a closer look.

"Is that painful?" Peter asked.

Remus laughed. "Honestly Pete, sometimes I think you should be taking our second year again when it comes to Transfiguration."

Lily, who had walked up to the boys, shot her boyfriend an annoyed look. "Give it back to me, James, so that I can correct my mistake."

He smirked. "Ah, I don't know if that would be such a good idea, Lil. As Headboy, I'm obliged to act against and report any animal mutilation."

She rolled her eyes. "James Potter…" she said in such a threatening tone that it made Sirius, Remus and Peter jump back a few feet and they hurried over to Mary and Brice.

James opened his hand so that the spell could reach its target. Lily restored her mistake with one wave of her wand and gave him a cold stare. "Done," she said coolly before walking back to sit down against the tree.

James quickly followed her and, as he sat down next to Lily, he hugged her close. "Sorry if I was being a git."

Lily looked at him and laughed. "Oh James, I know you can't help yourself. It is part of who you are and even though it can be annoying sometimes, I will love you anyway."

"I love you too," he said, gently tucking a lock of her auburn hair behind her ear before he kissed her.

Mary watched their embrace with mixed feelings. James and Lily had been publicly stating that they loved each other for a while now. Although Mary was feeling happy for them, the fact that she and Sirius hadn't reached that point yet was bugging her. They had told each other "You're amazing" or "You're so sweet" on numerous occasions, but that wasn't the same as those three little words put together.

Even though Mary knew that she loved Sirius, she still hadn't told him how she really felt. She feared that he would be running off faster than the speed of light if she did. That day in the stables when she told him he was becoming her big love and his shocked response wasn't something she would like to relive anytime soon. Even now, she felt Sirius stir uncomfortably next to her as he looked from James and Lily to her and back. Mary picked up her Charms book and that finally caught his full attention. "The Imperturbable charm?" he asked.

Mary nodded. "Flitwick gave us a hint that this one could be in our NEWT the other day, don't you remember?"

Sirius huffed. "I already know that stuff." For a moment he was looking just as arrogant as he had been in fifth year, until his expression softened as he smiled at Mary and put an arm around her. "But I suppose it wouldn't hurt to give it another look."

"Arrrrrrgh!" Brice suddenly growled before chucking away another piece of parchment. "I'm never going to solve this assignment. It's too hard."

"Do you want me to take a look?" Remus asked.

Brice looked sideways at him. She looked like she had only just noticed that he was sitting next to her. "But you're not taking Arithmancy."

"No, but I happen to be very clever, so maybe I can help you out after all."

"But… This assignment is particularly complicated."

"Why don't you let me decide that for myself?" Remus smiled before he put an arm around Brice and leaned in to take a closer look at her assignment.

Mary and Lily exchanged significant glances and James smiled as he watched Remus and Brice for a moment, before looking at Sirius. "Have you asked her yet, Padfoot?"

"Asked me what?" Mary said absent-mindedly while she was trying to tear her gaze off a cuddling Brice and Remus.

"Well, Prongs here asked me to do the patrolling tonight with you instead of him and Lily."

"Oh," Mary said, looking surprised. "Why?"

Lily cleared her throat. "I second that: why?"

"Well," James said, smiling mysteriously. "I thought it would be great if we could have the night off and spend it together."

"What, like a date?" Lily frowned.

"Yeah, I suppose you could call it a date," he laughed before looking at Mary. "So will you do it?"

"Sure, no problem," Mary said. She smiled back untill her eyes suddenly fell on Professor Zabini who was walking towards them. "Oh bugger!" she groaned and quickly tried to hide behind Sirius's back, but it was already too late.

"Good day, ladies and gents," Zabini's cheerful voice sounded.

"Good day, professor," they echoed.

"I see that even on such a lovely day, you're still studying for your NEWT exams. Very wise indeed. I heard the exams are even harder than last year. And you need good grades to get into the continuation schooling programs of your choice. Ah well, it is not my intention to keep you up much longer, but I wonder if Miss Woods – once she has finished trying to locate something behind Mr. Black's back of course - could join me for a walk around the lake."

Mary, still hiding behind Sirius's back, peered around his shoulder. "What, like now?"

"I don't have all day, but I promise it won't take much of your time," the Professor said kindly.

"Go on," Sirius muttered while softly pushing Mary back up.

She reluctantly walked to Zabini and, as he started to walk away, shot a weary look over her shoulder at Lily before following him. She had a sneaky suspicion what Zabini wanted to talk about. She hadn't exactly been hiding the fact that she wasn't interested in becoming an Auror after all, but she also hadn't told him about it like she promised, nor given a clear explanation. Mary's presumption turned out to be correct as Zabini – hardly out of earshot of the others – turned towards her and said: "So it's not going to be the Auror Program after all."

"I'm afraid not, sir," Mary replied.

Zabini gave her a piercing look. "Have you given the possibility serious thought?"

"Yes, I have. I did consider it, but I've come to the conclusion that I want to be a Healer. I just want to help and heal people; that is my dream. I am sorry if that disappoints you, sir."

Zabini laughed. "Mary, I'm not disappointed, although it is a very sad day for the Auror Program. However, I must stress that you will keep up your game when it comes to duelling. You may not notice it at Hogwarts, but the outer world is no longer a safe place at the moment. Especially for a Muggle-born like yourself…"

"Is it really that bad?"

Zabini stared over the lake for a moment. "I wish I could tell you that the Ministry is exaggerating, but Voldemort's power is increasing every day. Not that there isn't anything done about it."

"But I thought the Ministry was lacking-"

"-Forget about the Ministry. Listen, I cannot make you promise to keep this quiet, but I need you to tell as little people as possible, but Dumbledore… Let's just say that there are plans to… to organise a group of skilled wizards without the Ministry's knowledge. This group will fight the Death Eaters and try to prevent Voldemort from gaining ultimate power."

Mary frowned. "Sir, you mean like an… army?"

Zabini smiled. "Yes, I suppose that's what you could call it. Anyway, I am confident that this group is blessed should you and your friends would decide to join. Would you be interested in fighting for a good cause?"

"Er… I suppose so, but wouldn't that be dangerous?"

"Extremely hazardous."

Mary couldn't suppress a grin. "Well, then I'm sure you can count James and Sirius in."

"Now why doesn't that surprise me? But either way, focus on passing your exams first. I'm sure Dumbledore won't mention any of this until you graduate. Right, I will not keep you up any longer. Good luck and if you ever change your mind about your career, don't hesitate to switch. The Auror Program would be honored to have you."

Zabini was about to walk off, when Mary called after him: "Sir, what am I going to tell the others?"

He chuckled. "Shall we just say that your decision shattered my hart into a thousand pieces?" He gave her a meaningful look, winked and walked away.

Mary remained standing there for another while and pondered over what Zabini said before she forced herself to walk back to the others. Even though they knew that Voldemort was on the rise, it all seemed so far away at Hogwarts. Sure, they all read the Daily Prophet and parents of students did occasionally die or disappear, but any of that hadn't happened to her or her close friends. And because it seemed highly unlikely that Voldemort would ever dare to attack the school, most students felt pretty safe around here. But how would it be outside the safe boundaries of Hogwarts? In two months, they would have graduated and then what? Were they going to have to watch their backs constantly?

When Mary had finally reached the others, they were packing their things to get ready for dinner. Sirius handed Mary her bag and Charms book. "How did it go?"

Mary – still thinking about the post-Hogwarts life – didn't answer immediately. "What?"

Sirius shot her a puzzled look. "The talk with Zabini. How did he take it?"

"Oh that," Mary said while she and Sirius followed the others to the castle. "He said it was a black day for the Auror Office and that I shattered his heart into a thousand pieces."

He chuckled and reached for her hand. "At least you managed to break one heart today. Come on, if we hurry up we'll be in time for supper. I heard we're having lamb chops tonight."

After dinner (Sirius had been right, the house-elves served lamb chops), they all went back to the Common Room. All of them but James and Lily, because he had "abducted" her before supper, saying that they would be having dinner somewhere else.

Sirius, Peter and Remus played a few games of Exploding Snap and Brice assisted Mary in resolving today's crossword puzzle in the Daily Prophet, until it was time for Sirius and Mary to go patrolling the corridors of Hogwarts.

They walked down the first floor in silence until Sirius reached into his robes and pulled out his wand and an old piece of parchment. "I think it's time we got some assistance."

Mary looked down at the parchment. "Is that the infamous Marauder's Map? That is some form of extraordinary advanced magic."

"Hu-um," Sirius nodded before tapping the parchment and muttering: "I solemny swear that I am up to no good."

Mary snorted. "That is something only you guys could come up with. Who's idea was it anyway?"

"You'd be surprised if you knew."

"Was it you?"

"No."

"James?"

"Nope. It was Moony's idea."

Mary stared at him. "Remus came up with that slogan?"

"Yes, he did," Sirius said proudly and he laughed at Mary's stunned face. "Oh, you girls all have this image of Remus being shy and responsible, but he's a lot more mischievous than you think."

"Remus… Well, have I ever?" Mary muttered, looking astonished before looking down at the Map. "Oooh look, Hufflepuffs Caroline Lazeby and Larry Everett are having a good time in that empty classroom on the fourth floor."

"Time to intervene their private little party, then," Sirius grinned.

When they had arrived on the "crime scene" and Sirius was telling off a sulking Caroline and Larry for breaking the rules, Larry called him "a filthy hypocrite" which made Mary laugh aloud. Sirius imperturbably adapted an even sterner look and sent the couple straight back to the Hufflepuff Common Room. He then looked at Mary, who was leaning against the wall, still giggling. "A lot of help of you are."

She laughed, placing a hand on her stomach. "You've got to admit; the guy has a point. Come on, we'd better check the other rooms in this corridor as well." She was about to open the door of the next classroom, when Sirius suddenly said: "Wait."

Mary, still holding the door handle, shot Sirius an amused look. "What, is Peeves hiding in there?"

"No… But there is something I should tell you."

Mary, feeling apprehensive because of his sudden serious tone, let go of the handle and walked over to him. "Yes…?" she asked uncertainly.

Sirius fiddled with a decrepit corner of the Marauders Map for a moment. "I've been thinking about this for quite some time now and I feel the time is right to eh… to say or express… No, to make clear that… Well, you know."

Mary frowned at him and looked more confused than ever.

"You don't know", Sirius said, trying to read Mary's frown. When she slowly shook her head, he sighed. "I suck at doing this. Frankly, this part always worries me because even though I watched others do it, I cannot… Well, I tried before obviously but that's not the point, but it's seems to be impossible for me to admit that… that I…"

"Hang on, are you saying that you…?" Mary asked in a quivering voice and Sirius shot her a hopeful look, silently begging her to say the words first. "Are you… Are you breaking up with me?"

Sirius stared at her with his mouth hanging open. "Huh?" was all he managed to stammer.

"Because to do that now, right after I slept with you, would be really vicious," she said with tears in her eyes.

Sirius - still looking dumbfounded – tried to make sense of what was happening. How could Mary get it so wrong? "But…?"

"Sorry, I can't take this," Mary interrupted him shortly and turned around, but Sirius stopped her by grabbing her hand.

"No wait, you don't understand. Mare, I don't want to break up with you."

"Oh," she said, looking relieved. "But… Why did you say that this was the hardest part?"

Sirius thought about his lack of choosing the right words. "I suppose I was rambling a bit."

"I'm sorry, but to call that flood of incoherent words coming out of your mouth rambling would be an understatement."

Sirius cupped her face. "You're right, I was being stupid, but this is not easy for me." He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "What I want to say is: I love you, did you know that?"

Mary stared into his sincere eyes. She had thought that since that awkward moment in her parent's stables, she knew all about Sirius's fear to commit, but she finally understood now. For him, saying "I love you" was more than simply declaring his love. It meant that he was finally placing his trust in her, their relationship and most of all: their future. Knowing that meant the world to her, much more than finally hearing those lovely, but burdened words. Nevertheless, right when Sirius was starting to interpret her silence the wrong way and shot her an insecure look, she smiled and stroke his hair before whispering: "I love you too."

End of Update 

A/N: I wrote the final part of this Chapter (Sirius telling Mary he loves her) with James Morrison's song "You give me something" in my head. It perfectly fits my view on Sirius in his younger years. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post links, but I _can_ post the lyrics, so here they are (and if you don't know this song yet, listen to it and I'm sure that you'll hear why it has gotten (younger) Sirius written all over it.

_You want to stay with me in the morning  
You only hold me when I sleep,  
I was meant to tread the water  
Now I've gotten in too deep,  
For every piece of me that wants you  
Another piece backs away._

'Cause you give me something  
That makes me scared, alright,  
This could be nothing  
But I'm willing to give it a try,  
Please give me something  
'Cause someday I might know my heart.

You already waited up for hours  
Just to spend a little time alone with me,  
And I can say I've never bought you flowers  
I can't work out what they mean,  
I never thought that I'd love someone,  
That was someone else's dream. 

'Cause you give me something  
That makes me scared, alright,  
This could be nothing  
But I'm willing to give it a try,  
Please give me something,  
'Cause someday I might call you from my heart,  
But it might me a second too late,  
And the words I could never say  
Gonna come out anyway.

'Cause you give me something  
That makes me scared, alright,  
This could be nothing  
But I'm willing to give it a try,  
Please give me something  
'Cause someday I might know my heart.  
_Know my heart, know my heart, know my heart_


	37. The Potions NEWT

**A/N: Thanks everyone for telling me what I should do once the Hogwarts-part of this story has come to an end. I suppose it's best if I also post the chapters after that in here. It's going to be a loooooooooooooong story, though. And that loooooooooooong is **_**not**_** an exaggeration.**

**Anyway, here's the next chapter. Enjoy and R&R. Thanks! **

**Chapter Thirty-Seven**

The following weeks were all about studying and preparing for the exams. The seventh year students studied almost every minute of every hour of every day. The Professors had started to round up on their courses; they had extensively discussed all the NEWT subjects and were currently either repeating the most important spells and potions or giving the students the possibility to ask questions.

Fact was that Mary, Sirius and the others were spending more time with their noses in the books than ever before. The only thing that made it possible to go on was the thought that the end was near. It was almost time to put the learnt to practice, passing those bloody NEWTS and, by doing so, finally graduate from Hogwarts.

Mary was feeling more nervous about the exams every day. She knew that she had to achieve an E on all her courses (at the very least) to get into the Healing Program. This was attainable for all her courses, if it wasn't for that stupid Potions. Mary had been so nervous in a recent class that she had accidentally added an entire Valerian root to her Growing Draft instead of a half chopped one which caused her cauldron to explode and - to the amusement of James and Sirius – drench Severus Snape in the potion, enlarging his nose to dangerous proportions.

Needless to say that this embarrassing event didn't improve her faith in brewing potions a lot. Even though Sirius and Lily had tutored Mary for weeks and kept telling her that all she had to do was reading the instructions carefully and remain calm, the very thought of having to take that Potions exam all by herself was making her hands shake and her head spin.

Mary was talking about this with Brice the day before the practical Potions exam (the first NEWT of the period) while walking to the Common Room from the library. "It's getting worse every day. Mind you, soon the very word "Potions" will turn my hands into a trembling mess."

Brice grinned mischievously and looked down at Mary's hands. "Potionssssss," she hissed.

Mary rolled her eyes. "Haha. Aren't we being sharp today."

Brice laughed. "Oh come on, Mary, where is your sense of humor?"

She snorted. "It got probably lost somewhere in one of my books. But seriously, if I don't get that E on potions I can forget about becoming a Healer."

Her friend shook her blonde hair over her shoulders and shot her a look. "Hmm… Have you considered taking some Baruffio's Brain Elixir?"

"Of course not. That stuff doesn't even work."

"So what if it's just a placebo? As long as it gets you through that exam…"

"A placebo only works when you believe in it, so clearly that is not an option for me and-"

Mary and Brice had rounded the corner and walked straight into Regulus and his friends. His eyes narrowed at the sight of them. "Oh goody," Brice muttered.

"Having a good time, Woods?" Regulus sneered.

"I am doing great, yes. You?" Mary replied politely.

"Don't think your phoney act is going to deceive me."

"I'm not putting up an act for anyone."

Regulus scowled. He was nearly as good looking as Sirius, but missed that certain warmth his older brother had in abundance. "Did you get my latest owl?"

"Yes, I suppose it's one more threat to add to my already extensive collection."

"You would do well to take them serious."

Mary sighed. "Well, I'm not going to back away, so I suggest that you'll just have to live with the fact that your older brother is dating a Muggle-born girl."

She attempted to walk away but Regulus held her back by grabbing her arm. "You really have _no_ idea what you're getting into, do you?"

Mary shot him a confused look. "What are you talking about?"

"The wizarding world as it is right now. Mudbloods like you will be eliminated first and dating a pureblood guy won't change anything about that."

Mary angrily opened her mouth, but got cut off by a furious-looking Brice. "You insolent prat! You could get in some serious trouble by calling her names like that. If James or Lily-"

"Evans would have no right of speaking, considering she's also a Mudblood."

Brice looked like she was about to hit him, but Mary stepped intervened right in time. "He's not worth it." She pulled her struggling friend along and shot Regulus a disdainful look. "And you can desist with those threats of yours, because they will never stop me from seeing Sirius."

"Maybe some day a killing curse will!" Regulus shouted after them, but she ignored his last comment.

Brice was still fuming when they had reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. "That guy is unbelievable. If I was in charge, he would be pickling salamander brains for a month!"

Mary shrugged. "I'm not sure if that would change anything. Fanged Frisbee."

When the girls had climbed through the portrait hole and walked to the others who were sitting at the large table in the corner, Brice said: "But his behaviour is simply intolerable. Threatening you, the nerve! Does Sirius know about this?"

"Shhh!" Mary hissed urgently, but Sirius was already looking up from his Defense book. "Know what?"

She shot Brice an annoyed look before smiling sweetly at Sirius and sitting down next to him. "Nothing, apparently McGonagall wants to forbid students from running down the halls."

He arched an eyebrow. "And McGonagall was threatening you because you _were_ running?"

Mary, realizing this had been a lousy excuse, bit her lip and avoided his gaze. "Yes…"

"Mare, you're possibly the worst liar I know. Tell me what really happened."

"Alright. Me and Brice ran into Regulus."

Sirius frowned. "Regulus has been threatening you?"

"Well, he hasn't exactly asked me out on a date if that's what you mean."

"He called her Mudblood and threatened that she should get out of your life or… Well, you know," Brice said.

"How long has this been going on?" Sirius asked, shooting her a close look.

"Ehm… From the moment we started dating, actually."

Sirius grinded his teeth and crumbled a piece of parchment before making up his mind. "That little jerk. I'll show him," he said as he rose from his seat.

"Oooh, can I come?" Peter asked excitedly.

"No wait!" Mary and Lily said at the same time.

Sirius looked from Mary to Lily. "What?"

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Lily asked, looking worried.

"I think it is," Brice stated loudly.

"-Really Sirius," Mary interrupted after she shot Brice a warning look. "He's not worth it. Just let it go."

He roled his eyes. "I'm not going to beat him up. All I want to do is talk."

"Oh," Mary said, and Lily looked relieved.

Sirius bent down to give her a sweet kiss. "Please be careful," she said pleadingly and he smiled. "I'll be back in a bit."

"So can I come too?" Peter asked again in an excited voice.

Sirius chuckled. "Sure Wormtail, as long as you behave yourself."

He winked at the girls and headed out the room. While Mary watched him and Peter disappear through the portrait hole, she thought about what Regulus said about being a Muggle-born in their current society. Was the rise of Voldemort really be as catastrophic as everyone feared? She remembered what Professor Zabini had told her the other day. Mary looked at Lily and Brice and wondered what they thought. "Don't you guys ever wonder?"

They looked at her. "About what?" Brice asked.

Mary fiddled with the feather of her quill for a moment before she sighed. "About how it's going to be when we're out of Hogwarts. How it will be to live in a world with the daily threat of running into Voldemort and the Death Eaters."

"I think about it at least once a day," Lily confessed after a pause. "It's not going to be easy, that's for sure. I just-"

Lily stopped talking when she noticed that James, Remus, Sirius and Peter were walking inside. Her emerald eyes literally lit up at the sight of James. Ever since their last private get-together a few weeks ago (as it happens, Sirius _did_ inform James about the possibility to get into the girl's dormitories), they had fallen in love even more. Mary had always thought this was impossible, but after watching James and Lily cuddle over the last few weeks, she had concluded that she could not have been more wrong about that.

Sirius sat down next to her, pulled her onto his lap and planted several kisses near the back of her neck. Mary giggled. "How did it go?"

"He won't bother you anymore. If he does, James gave me his personal permission to personally kick him into the Forbidden Forest," Sirius grinned.

"Thanks, I guess…"

"But don't ever hide things from me again, even if you want to protect me." After a short silence he added: "I'm writing my mother in the morning."

"How did you?…" Mary said but shut her mouth when she noticed the look on Sirius's face. "Regulus told me, but Mare, I mean it: no more secrets, okay?"

Mary nodded as she stroke his cheek before looking over at Remus and Brice, who were sitting close to each other at the other end of the table. Mary smiled at the memory of Brice telling her about them being a couple. After all, Remus had kissed Brice almost a week ago in the owlery when he had insisted on letting her borrow his owl to send a letter to her parents. But although they had kissed more often since then, Brice insisted on stating that their relationship wasn't official. Mary and Lily assumed she was doing this because she didn't want to deter Remus, but he seemed to be okay with it. Mary hadn't seen him this happy in ages.

"So Mare," Lily asked. "What do you think about living in a world that is being dominated by Voldemort?"

Everyone at the table fell silent and stared at them. "What?" Remus asked.

Mary cleared her throat. "We were discussing this when you guys came in. We're just a bit worried about how it's going to be when we've graduated."

"Things aren't as bad as they seem, they cannot be," Peter said, looking hopeful, but Remus shook his head. "I'm sorry Wormtail, but it doesn't look that good to me. Did you hear about Joey Tomkinson's parents getting tortured to death by the Death Eaters last week?"

Brice sighed. "It's horrible. Joey's mum was one of my dad's co-workers."

James stared at all the gloomy faces at the table and he drummed his fingers on the table for a moment before saying: "Maybe it will all be fine. Why being depressed about something we haven't experienced yet? Who knows, perhaps one day some mighty superwizard will appear and get rid of Voldie and his goofy assistants in the blink of an eye."

Sirius laughed. "Honestly Prongs, you should stop reading those Muggle comics."

"Well, I don't know much about superwizards, but how about a magical supersquad?" Mary said, smiling mysteriously.

James, Sirius and Remus looked genuinely intrigued and Peter stared at her with big eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Zabini told me to keep it quiet, so keep this to yourselves, but-" Mary leaned in to the others and continued in a quieter voice: "Apparently there are plans to raise an army without the Ministry's knowledge."

"Wicked!" James and Sirius called, but Lily was frowning. "Who are we talking about here?"

"Dumbledore."

"No way!" Brice gasped.

Mary chuckled. "Way," she replied. "But listen, I'm not even sure if Zabini was telling the truth, but if he was… Should we consider… you know… joining this group?"

Sirius leaned his chin on her shoulder. "I think so. If fighting for a good cause would make a difference, then why not?"

"Because it would be dangerous?" Lily suggested.

James squeezed her hand. "What's life without a little danger, Lil?"

She shot him a look. "I'm just saying…"

"Look," Remus said calmly. "We still have time to worry about Voldemort after our exams. And whatever that means, we'll deal with it when we get there."

Everyone agreed that the most sensible thing to do was concentrating on making it through their NEWTS before focusing on destroying Voldemort. They picked up their books until they took a short break to have dinner before getting back upstairs to study some more. When Mary was unable to keep her eyes open any longer and was yawning widely, Sirius gently picked the Potions book out of her hands, put it away and forced her to go to bed.

She didn't sleep well that night. She only managed to snooze for a few hours and the one time she actually did fall asleep, she dreamed that her cauldron exploded and set the entire school on fire. Due to her restless night, Mary was feeling even more exhausted when she woke up than she did the night before. She dragged herself to the Great Hall, where she was the very first student to sit down and have breakfast, which came down to consuming not one, but two cups of strong coffee.

Mary was just considering if she should take a third cup when the others - besides Brice and Peter who weren't taking Potions - joined her and started to talk excitedly about the exam. Sirius hugged her close and she gave him a kiss. "Morning."

"Did you sleep well?"

She pulled a face. "What do you think?"

Sirius shot her an empathetic look. "That sucks, but look at it from the bright side: you still look hot as hell."

Mary huffed and sipped her coffee. "Good looks won't get me an E."

He laughed. "I wouldn't be so sure about that. I heard Pierce is one of the judges."

Gregory Pierce was a famous Healer who had single-handedly come up with a remedy spell to cure most venomous animal bites in an instant. Mary sighed and spent the remaining time of the breakfast by staring at the enchanted ceiling, while she listened to Sirius, James and Remus discussing who should become the new coach of the Chudley Cannons.

After breakfast they slowly made their way to a distant corridor on the main floor where the practical Potions NEWT would take place. They joined the other candidates – Severus Snape and Alison Zabini among them - and patiently waited to be called in. Because their names started with the first letters of the alphabet, Sirius and Lily were one of the first students to be summoned. After she had wished him and Lily good luck, Sirius softly squeezed her hand and said things were going to be alright. She smiled back weakly and watched how he and a few other students disappeared through a heavy wooden door.

Thirty minutes later, it was Remus's turn to take the exam. James, who had always claimed he didn't even know how to be nervous for exam, was pacing up and down the corridor before he told Mary he was going to the bathroom. She kept glancing down at her watch and realized she still had to wait another while before she would have to take the exam. She flopped down against the wall and right when she was thinking about taking another look at her notes, she noticed that a rather familiar silhouette was slowly approaching towards her. Could that be…

"Hullo stranger."

Mary's mouth fell open. "Jonathan! What… What are you doing here? How?"

He stared at her. "Dumbledore was so generous to give me a chance and take the NEWTS at Hogwarts. I'm actually glad that I'm running into you. D'you mind if I join you?"

Mary shot him a cautious look but Jonathan looked sincere, so she nodded and he sat down next to her. He looked a lot paler and skinnier than she remembered. He pulled a hand through his curly hair before saying hesitantly: "I owe you an apology for my aggressive behaviour, but you must believe me when I say that I loved you and that it was never my intention to hurt you. I wasn't myself when I…"

"Threw me against the wall," Mary filled him in kindly.

"Yes, that," Jonathan said, smiling wryly. "I'm sorry, but back then I couldn't think straight. I was so afraid to lose you…"

"Correction: you'd already lost me."

"Yes, and my jealous behaviour didn't make it much better, did it?"

"Not really, no."

Jonathan put his hands in his pockets. "I hear Black has been taking care of you since?"

Mary smiled. "He did. And still does, I might add."

"I knew that git was after you from the beginning."

Mary gave him a friendly punch. "Hey, that's my boyfriend you're talking about!"

Jonathan snorted. "Alright, alright. Look, all I wanted was a change to apologize."

"Apology accepted."

He actually smiled for the first time. "Thank you. Now can we-"

"OI!" 

James had returned from the bathroom and was shooting Jonathan a furious look. He pulled him back up and pushed him away. "Get away from Mary. Now!"

"No James, it's okay," Mary said quickly as she also crawled back to her feet. "Jonathan only came down to apologize."

James looked from Jonathan to Mary and back. "For some reason I find that hard to believe, but even so, you simply have no permission to be here. You'd do well to leave now before I'm going to change my mind and alert McGonagall after all."

Jonathan shot James an angry look and grinded his teeth, but then he nodded and said: "Fine, whatever. I already did what I came to do anyway. Goodbye Mary, I really meant what I said." He shot her a significant look and walked off.

Mary watched him disappear around the corner before turning back at James. "Why did you have to do that?"

He glared at her. "Did you forget what he has done to you?" But before he could have said anything else, the wooden doors opened and a tiny witch appeared who called in the next students, including James.

After he had disappeared through the doors, only three other students were left in the corridor: Samir Wouyeri, Alison Zabini and Svetlana Zhuriva. Mary smiled nervously at Alison before she started to pace up and down the corridor herself. This final wait seemed to last even longer than before. At first she thought she had started to imagine things, but then she noticed that the others were also constantly checking their watches. Instead of feeling annoyed, Mary decided to take this extra time as an unexpected opportunity to consult her notes one last time. However, she had only just reached the other end of the corridor and was checking the ingredients of a Memory Potion when she felt that two hands were clapped over her eyes from behind and heard a voice whisper in her ear: "Guess who?"

End of Update 

**A/N - hides behind her keyboard - No there is nothing here... Sorry about the cliffie, but I'll try to update as soon as possible! –Mara.**


	38. Hogwarts Graduates

**A/N: It was very amusing to read ****all your suggestions about who was 'surprising' Mary like that. Some of you were right, others weren't. Oh well, you'll find out soon enough. I'd like to dedicate this update to all my faithful reviewers. You guys rock!**

**Chapter Thirty-Eight:**

Mary didn't even have to look around to know who had just clapped his hands over her eyes and pulled her behind the statue of Cliodna the Beautiful. She would recognize his voice everywhere in an instant. "Sirius!" she called as she turned around and found herself staring at her boyfriend's grinning face. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd come back down and give you a good luck kiss before you go take that NEWT."

He slipped his hands around her waist and leaned in to kiss her, but she backed away and shot a nervous glance over her shoulder to see if people were aware that the two of them were standing here before she looked back and hissed: "Sirius, you're not supposed to be here. What if you get caught?"

"Pfft, no one is going to catch me."

"But… If a teacher sees you here with me, you'll be suspended. And then you won't be able to get into the Auror program and that's what you've wanted for years and-"

He chuckled and reached for her hand. "Mare relax, no one but Moony and Wormtail know that I'm here. And it's not like I _walked_ into this corridor."

Mary narrowed her eyes. "How _did_ you get here?"

"Hang on, I'll show you." Sirius reached in his robes and pulled out his wand. He tapped Cliodna's shoulder twice and whispered "_Dissendium_." The statue seemed to come alive as Cliodna was slowly lifting her marble robes to reveal a secret passage. Mary stared at the passage way, too dumbfounded to speak for a moment, which made Sirius laugh. "I suppose it used to be every man's dream to get under Cliodna's robes while she was alive and now finally, we can."

Mary smacked him on the shoulder with her parchment scroll, but couldn't help but laugh. "That is just cool, there is no other word for it."

"Yeah, but that is not why I came back. There is something you should know about the exam."

Mary's mind snapped back to reality at once. She realized that she was only minutes away from that dreadful Potions NEWT and her nerves, which she had temporarily forgotten about, returned with full force and started to nibble on the inside of her belly. "What about it?" she asked nervously.

To her utter surprise, Sirius started to smile. "It's the Draught of Living Death."

"You mean…"

"Yes! We practised that potion over a dozen times, remember?"

Mary stared at him for a moment, still having trouble to believe that the potion that she was about to brew was one of the very few drafts she could actually make without causing too much trouble. "That… That is just…"

"Sheer dumb luck?"

"Yes… Yes, I suppose it is," Mary replied as she thoughtfully bit on her thumb nail.

"No, of course not!" Sirius hissed and he grabbed her by the arms. "This means you're gonna sail through, because you _can_ brew this Potion without making it explode and setting the entire school on fire."

Mary gazed into his eyes and desperately tried to remember if she had told him about her nightmare. "How did you…?"

But Sirius silenced her by gently cupping her face with his hands and saying softly: "You'll do great, I just know it. Now how about that kiss…"

At that moment the wooden doors opened once more and Mary and Sirius heard the tiny witch's voice resounding through the corridor: "We are now ready for the final students. Would Mary Woods, Samir Wouyeri, Alison Zabini and Svetlana Zhuriva be so kind to follow me?"

Mary gave Sirius a quick kiss before pushing him back and hissing: "I love you. Now go, quickly!"

"Love you too. Good luck…" Sirius winked and gave her the thumbs up before climbing under Cliodna's robes as he tapped the statue once and slowly disappeared from view.

Mary hurried back to the other end of the hallway where the witch was waiting for her, eyeing Mary and the scroll of parchment she was holding suspiciously. "What are those?"

"They're just notes, madam," she replied, feeling relieved when she realized that Sirius hadn't been caught.

"Hand them over and you can go inside."

After Mary had passed her notes over to the witch, she walked through the doors and found herself looking around a small hall with a high ceiling, although unlike the one in the Great Hall, this ceiling was not enchanted. There was only one table left near the front. Mary dropped her bag next to it before she looked around the room for the second time. She was pleased to notice that Professor Sprout was supervising this exam.

Mary quickly skimmed the ingredients on the table in front of her and - noticing that asphodel, wormwood, valerian roots and sopophorous beans were among them - heaved a relieved sigh. For some ridiculous reason she had been fearing that the Professors were going to order her to brew a completely different potion, but it seemed she would be making the Draught of Living Death after all, just like everybody else.

"You will start the exam at my signal," Professor Sprout's amiable voice resounded calmly through the hall. "You have exactly one hour, so take your time. The potion that you are supposed to brew is the Draught of Living Death. Further instructions can be found on the black board behind me." Sprout smiled. "I am confident that each and every one of you will perform up to their own standards. Good luck. You may begin!"

Mary, Alison and the others quickly sorted the ingredients and started to weigh them on their scales. Having prepared this potion so many times before, Mary didn't even have to check the instructions on the board. She knew them by heart, but read them anyway. She had learned from her mistakes of the past. When she was checking how many sopophorous beans she needed to cut and the amount of juice she was supposed to add to her potion and noticed Sprout's readable handwriting, she couldn't help but snort loudly, which she hastily stifled into a cough when one of the Ministry wizards gave her an odd look. She had come such a long way since that morning in Slughorn's dungeon. Mary smiled at the memory of Sirius fixing her Amortentia while she carefully added the right amount sopophorous juice to her potion, which turned to a perfect blackcurrant colour at once. "Perhaps I'm not such a poor brewer after all," she grinned to herself before starting to stir her potion in the counter-clockwise direction.

At the end of the exam, Mary carefully filled her flask with a portion of her Draught of Living Death which - despite a few miniscule black flakes swirling around near the bottom - looked clear as water. She wrote down her name and house on the tag. After she'd put her bag over her shoulder, Mary walked to Professor Sprout and put the flask down on the desk.

"Thank you, Miss Woods. Did it go well?" the Professor asked kindly as she put Mary's flask in a box with the bottles of the other students.

"It could have been a lot worse, Professor," Mary replied merrily when she had looked at the other flasks and noticed that some of the drafts didn't look clear as water, but turbidly beige or even a blackish brown.

A cheerful Mary - feeling like a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders - and Alison walked back to the Great Hall together to have some lunch. Alison told her that she had made better Draught of living Death-potions in her life, but didn't entirely screw it up either. She also said that she didn't care that much about the NEWTS anyway, since she hadn't decided what she wanted to do after Hogwarts just yet.

"See you later, Alison," Mary said when they were entering the Great Hall. She quickly made her way over to their end of the table and adapted a mockingly depressed look before she sat down between James and Sirius.

Lily, who was sitting across them, shot her an excited look and started rattling: "Mare, you won't believe how relieved I was when I found out it was the Draught of living Death. I mean, that one's peanuts, even for you. So how did it go?" Her smile faded when she saw the expression on Mary's face. "What happened?"

Mary sighed and shrugged morosely. "It turned yellow," she said miserably after another long pause.

"Yellow??!!" Remus said, looking bemused. "But how-?"

"I don't know, okay!" Mary pouted while she was desperately trying to avoid Sirius or Lily's gaze, because she knew they would be on to her in a nanosecond and looked at James instead, who shot her a piercing look. Mary realized too late that he probably knew her better than she thought as well.

"So… You managed to turn your Draught of living Death in a "Curse of the Canary"-antedote, then?" he inquired, looking deadpan.

Mary felt her mouth twitch. "Well, it was more of a "Kill the neighbors loud and annoying Canary"-poison," she said with clenched teeth so that she wouldn't burst out laughing, which she did anyway when Remus, Lily and James snorted and Sirius's face suddenly dangled right in front of her as he leaned over to her across the table. "Why, you little…" he muttered darkly and pulled her into a hug. "We were really worried about you here," he mumbled in her hair.

Mary smiled and gave him a kiss before starting to butter her toast. "You really shouldn't have. My potion turned out alright. It's not an Outstanding, but an E is definitely a possibility."

"Good to hear it," Lily beamed.

"Where are Brice and Peter?" Mary asked as she took a goblet of pumpkin juice from Sirius.

"Getting ready for their Ancient Runes and Muggle Studies NEWT."

"Should we light a candle for them?" Mary grinned before sipping her juice happily.

"Nah," James said, sniggering. "I'm sure they'll pass them. Brice is excellent at Runes and Muggle Studies… Well, you couldn't possibly fail _that_ subject, now could you?"

"I suppose not," Remus laughed. "Anyway, if we're all done having lunch, I suggest we hit the library again."

"What's on the schedule for tomorrow?" James asked as he got up and stretched lazily.

"James…" Lily said, shooting him an incredulous look. "It's Charms and if you didn't know that until now, you have a real problem."

He laughed and put his arms around her waist. "Of course I knew Lil, I was only joking. How well do you know me by now?"

Lily muttered something unintelligible that came down to her not being surprised if James really wouldn't have known, but Mary was the only one who heard it since she was standing next to her. She grinned at her friend, hooked her arm through Lily's and they walked off to the library together, leaving "their" men behind in the Hall.

From that moment on, things seemed to fly by really fast. The next morning they had to perform at their Charms NEWT, practical Defense against the Dark Arts followed that afternoon, Herbology was scheduled for the day after that and before they realized, their exam period had finally come to an end. All they had to do now was wait for their results. The seventh year students were the only ones left at Hogwarts; younger students had already gone home. Contrary to the results of the OWL's which would be delivered in August, the NEWT results would be ready on Friday in the second week of June, which was today.

They were hanging out in their favourite spot on the grounds under the large oak tree near the lake. Remus, Brice and James were playing a game of Exploding Snap near the water, Peter and Lily were discussing why Muggles use batteries and Sirius was snoozing on the ground with his head on Mary's stomach, who sat against the tree and was writing a letter with directions to Hogwarts to her parents so that they would be able to attend the graduation.

"Are you sure that letter is even necessary?" Sirius asked drowsily without even opening his eyes.

"Oh believe me, I'm sure," Mary laughed. "I need to clarify very clearly on which platform they are supposed to run into the pillar. My dad never got that whole 9 ¾ story."

Sirius opened one eye and squinted because the bright rays of light shining into it. "If you say so," he smiled while intertwining his fingers with hers.

"You're not nervous at all?" she suddenly asked him incredulously.

"Nope."

"You're confident that you achieved only O's?"

Sirius shrugged. "Or E's, who cares? I haven't failed anything, that's for sure. And that's good enough, isn't it?"

"A's won't be good enough to get you into the Auror Program."

"You didn't hear me talk about A's, now did you?"

Mary smiled and shook her head. "Sirius Black, one day your arrogance is going to backfire at you," she said as she fondled his hair.

"Look!" Peter suddenly called while pointing at the sky, where a small group of tawnies was flying in their general direction.

They jumped up and stared at the owls that seemed to be carrying large square envelops. They had seen those only once before when they got their OWL results. This could only mean one thing: those letters carried the important results which would determine their future for good.

The tawnies landed on the ground in front of them and each owl lifted their right leg to their addressee so that they could untie the envelopes. Mary's hands were shaking when she was untying her envelope. She walked away a from the others, slit the envelope open as quickly as possible and unfolded the letter, took a few deep breaths and then finally dared to glance at her results:

**NASTILY EXHAUSTING WIZARDING TESTS**

_Pass Grades:  
Outstanding (O)  
Exceeds Expectations (E)  
Acceptable (A)_

Fail Grades:  
Poor (P)  
Dreadful (D)  
Troll (T)

**MARY ADRIENNE WOODS HAS ACHIEVED:**

_Charms: E  
Defense Against the Dark Arts: O  
Herbology: E  
Potions: E  
Transfiguration: O_

Mary read the piece of parchment over and again, but the information didn't change. Two O's and three E's… "I made it," she whispered to herself. "I made it!" She continued to stare down at those five surreal-looking grades while trying to process the fact that she actually managed to get an E in Potions. Right when Mary started to feel a bit dizzy from continuously staring at her results, she felt Sirius's arms around her waist. "How did you do?" he whispered softly in her ear.

Mary still didn't know what to say and just held up the parchment instead. Sirius roared happily and lifted her off her feet. She laughed, wrapped her legs around his waist and let him carry her as he jogged a few rounds around the tree. After he had finally put her down and kissed her passionately, she asked: "So how did _you_ do?"

Sirius showed her his results. Mary read the parchment and noticed that he had achieved exactly the same grades as she did, except that he had also got an O on Potions. "Oh wow sweetie, that's awesome, well done," she said happily before kissing him again.

After they broke apart, Sirius and Mary compared their results with the others. James had achieved the exact same grades as Sirius, whereas Lily's results – like Mary's - came down to two O's (Charms and Potions) and three E's. Brice had also done very well with a list of E's and one O (Ancient Runes) and Remus's list consisted of three O's (Charms, Defense and Transfiguration) and two E's (Herbology and Potions). And Peter's grades were all A's, except – a big surprise to all of them – the E he got on Defense.

The fact that they had all passed their NEWTS and would be graduating from Hogwarts together called for a serious celebration. They spent the night with the other seventh year students, Hagrid and some teachers, including Dumbledore, Zabini and Slughorn at the Three Broomsticks. Slughorn bought Mary a few butterbeers because she had managed to get an E in Potions and although he made it _very_ clear that he thought this result must have been sheer dumb luck, Mary couldn't care less. In fact, deep down she was actually agreeing with the Potions master.

The graduation took place only a few days later. It was a surreal experience to see so many adults, including Muggles, at Hogwarts together. Mary and Lily had arranged that their parents – since they didn't really know how to get to the school- traveled along (by the Express) with James's parents. This worked out fine and now they were all here.

Jenna was enjoying every minute at Hogwarts (and hanging out with Sirius). Mary took her on a little tour, along with Brice (who was an only child) and Lily (her big sister Petunia had refused to come). She liked the Gryffindor common room and dormitories, but simply adored the Great Hall. She couldn't stop staring at the enchanted ceiling which currently showed a crystal blue and cloudless sky. "Wait until you're watching the ceiling during a thunderstorm," Mary told Jenna cheerfully.

Jenna gasped. "You can see that too?"

"Well, not now of course," Mary said. "But I'm sure you'll see it in Autumn when you go to Hogwarts as a student."

The official graduation took place on the grounds. Hagrid had placed about a hundred chairs in front of a tall stage with a large wooden table on it and an aisle in between. When everyone – students, teachers and guests - had sat down, Dumbledore held a short and amusing speech in which he highlighted the finest moments of a few students (including this year's New Year's Eve party) before the presenting of the diploma's finally took place.

McGonagall was calling off names and while Mary was watching them walk forward one by one and receive their diploma's, she thought about what this graduation meant. The end of seven amazing years in which she had learnt so much about this world; a world that seemed so odd and new in the beginning, but by now felt like home more than anything. She glanced sideways at Sirius, who was holding her hand. He was closely following the ceremony, so she squeezed his hand. When he looked at her, Mary non-verbally tried to bring across what she was feeling and he seemed to understand what she meant, because he gave her a reassuring smile and squeezed back.

When his name was being called by McGonagall, Sirius winked at her and walked to the stage, where Dumbledore congratulated him and handed him that little but o so desirable scroll of parchment. Mary simply glowed with pride when she watched Dumbledore giving Sirius the official Hogwarts graduation hat. Contrary to the hat they had been wearing all those years, this one had a golden tuft instead of a black one.

After Mary had watched Lily, Remus, Brice, Peter and James and many other students receive their diploma's, it was her turn. She ascended the stairs and found herself standing in front of a smiling Dumbledore. "Congratulations Mary. You've done a marvellous job and I wish you all the best. The Healing Program should be honored to have a student like you among their midst soon," he said kindly, his blue eyes twinkling proudly, before handing her the graduation parchment.

"Thank you, sir," Mary replied, smiling back as she took the diploma and shook his hand. After he had passed her the graduation hat, she walked over to McGonagall to shake her hand as well and then jumped off the stage.

Afterwards there was a big afterparty that lasted until late in the evening. Loud cheerful music surrounded over the grounds and many house-elves were serving the most delicious snacks. Jenna (and many other Muggles or future Muggle-born students) were staring at them in awe.

At the end of the night when the guests were getting ready to leave and students were starting to say goodbye to each other and the teachers, Mary and the others walked to their favourite spot one last time. "So this is it, then," James sighed after he had wrapped his arms around Lily and stared over the lake. "The end of an era…"

"You're saying that like all the fun is over for good," Sirius sniggered, holding Mary close to him and playing with a lock of her long hair.

Remus, holding hands with Brice, snorted. "Padfoot, we are supposed to be _adults_. Behaving like one once a while might do you some good."

"But things are going to change, no matter what," Peter said wisely. "The world is different and we will be different there, too."

"Not necessarily, Pete," Lily said.

"Since when are you supporting Marauder-actions?" James asked, looking stunned.

She laughed. "I'm just saying that you _can_ have fun without having to act mischievous all the time."

James huffed. "That doesn't sound like fun, it sounds _dull_."

"I think Lil means that the fact that we're leaving Hogwarts doesn't necessarily mean that we're also losing the school spirit," Mary said thoughtfully.

"Exactly. Thanks Mare!" Lily grinned.

"I think I agree," Remus nodded.

"But…" James said, still looking unconvinced. "No more pranking? _Ever_?"

"You could always start pranking dark wizards instead," Brice suggested dryly and they all laughed.

"But man, am I gonna miss this place," Sirius sighed.

"Think about it, Sirius," Brice said. "You're taking the best part of Hogwarts – means us – with you. Mary is right. Hogwarts will always be part of us as long as we stick together."

"OK, now that is just downright cheesy," Sirius sniggered. "But also kind of true, I suppose," he added thoughtfully as an afterthought. 

James nodded. "I think we should make it official," he said. "Let's all make an oath that, no matter how hard it'll get out there, we'll always stay true to each other."

He picked up a tiny pebble and cast it into the lake before saying: "No matter what?"

The others also bent down and picked up pebbles. "No matter what!" they chanted as one before they all threw their pebbles into the lake at the same time. They hugged each other, forming a big group hug as they silently watched the stones causing many little waves in the water at first before the surface of the lake turned smooth again; their recently made pact already invisible, but not forgotten.

End of Update

**A/N: Soooooooo… This is the end ****of Part One, the part where Sirius and Mary fall in and out of love and in again. Next up is what happens in the first war against Voldemort. It's the reason why I wanted to create the story and I've been told that it's a very exciting tale, so…. Chapters spiked with a lot more drama, action, humor and romance are coming your way, so stay tuned! –Mara.**


	39. Summer Break

**A/N: Thanks for all the comments guys! It's what keeps me going. This is the first chapter of the post-Hogwarts part and I hope you all enjoy it a lot. I'd like to dedicate to all my faithful readers, and the people who like to leave reviews in particular. Enjoy! -Mara**

**Chapter ****Thirty-Nine**

"I cannot believe we're going home already."

Mary was leaning on the balcony of their picturesque hotel room on the Greek island of Rhodes as she was watching the sunset. The bright rays of sunlight had turned the terracota balcony into a mesmerizing orange, pink and red. The sun seemed to illuminate the water as it was slowly sinking into the sea, its sunrays turning the hot stone walls of the hotel into a deep shade of red.

"Hu-hum," Sirius mumbled while making a picture of Mary with the sun setting on the background. And then another one when she rolled her eyes at him and giggled. "Enough with the photographs already! How many of me are on there anyway?"

Sirius shrugged and merely smiled, because he really didn't know the answer either. Mary's parents had given them a magical camera as a graduation present and made them promise to make as many pictures as possible (the fact that the images would be moving seemed to excite Mr. Woods the most) on their Summer trip through all the European countries they were visiting. In the last few weeks, Sirius and Mary had managed to travel to France, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy and their final destination: Greece.

And Sirius had made hundreds of photographs. Most images included Mary because for one, he couldn't stop looking at her and she turned out to be very photogenic. And two, Mary didn't really know how to work the camera. The first time she tried to make a picture of him, she accidentally erased all the material of their stay in Spain and they had to apparate back to do everything all over again. Ever since then, she had mostly left the camera alone.

And so, it was Mary who was waving at him from a deserted cliff in Normandy and on top of the Eiffel Tower in France, Mary who was standing in front of a field of thousands of tulips in the Keukenhof and walked on the cheese market in Alkmaar in the Netherlands, Mary who was walking on the Ramblas in Barcelona and witnessed the bull race of Pamplona in Spain, Mary who was smiling in front of the Pantheon in Rome and the San Marco Cathedral in Venice in Italy and it was Mary who was admiring the theatre of Dionysus in Athens and the acropolis of Lindos on Rhodes in Greece.

Sirius did appear on some of the photographs, but considering that a wizarding camera looked very different from its muggle equivalent, it was a bit tricky to ask a random passer-by to make a picture without having to answer some inconvenient questions. Still, they did spot wizards and witches occasionally. They even ran in on Professor McGonagall when they were about to throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain, looking completely surreal without her usual robes and hat, but wearing brown trousers and a hideous green blouse. However, their former Transfiguration Professor was more than willing to make a couple of pictures of Sirius and Mary together.

After taking another picture of his (now scowling) girlfriend, Sirius grinned and said: "Not nearly enough to capture the essence of your beauty."

She snorted when he walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. "Oooh, catchy phrase, that one. In what kind of self-help book did you find that cheesy line: 'How to win over the girl of your dreams?'"

Sirius sniggered. "It's the truth, love. Besides, I already have you and even if I didn't, I wouldn't need something that silly to make you fall in love with me."

Mary laughed. "Touche."

Sirius smiled and kissed her bare shoulder. Her skin was still warm from the heat of the sun and he could spot countless freckles. Mary's normally pale skin had turned sunkissed and was covered with many miniscule freckles. Mary hated them, but Sirius thought they were extremely adorable. A few nights ago he had tried to count every single one of them on her body, but he had lost count on the way. He breathed in and caught the sweet scent of her skin and perfume. "I love you so much," he muttered softly with his lips still on her shoulder.

"I love you too," she whispered back as she turned her head to give him a sweet kiss.

Mary sighed happily while staring at the horizon where the sun had now almost disappeared in the water. "Do you know how the ancient Greek explained the phenomenon of day and night?"

"No."

"Helios was the God of the Sun. During the day, he rode with his chariot through the sky, rising in the East and setting in the West. And at night, it was the Moon Goddess Selene who rode her chariot through the sky until Helios took over again."

Sirius thought about this for a moment. "That makes kind of sense when you consider their religion and how much they knew about Astronomy back then."

Mary looked back at him in surprise: "You know something about muggle Greek mythology?"

Sirius shrugged. "Not much, but I found this book on European history in my parents house a few years back and that one contained some Chapters on Greek mythology."

"I cannot believe _your_ parents own a Muggle book."

"I don't think they knew to tell you the truth. I found the book in the attic, so… But I agree that it's quite remarkable."

"Hmmm," Mary replied while carressing his upper arm, who was still hugging her close. "Sirius, how is it going to be when we head back home?"

"Well, first we're going to stay at your parents place for a while and then we'll help James and Lily when they're ready to move into their new house and then-"

"-No, no that's not what I meant," she interrupted and turned to face him. "What will happen to us?"

Sirius looked at her, not sure what she was talking about. "Us eh… what?"

"What are we going to do? We cannot live with my parents forever! I wouldn't want to do that in the first place."

"We'll get our own place."

"How? James inherited a lot of money when his grandmother passed away, but we don't have any money."

"We'll figure something out."

"How can you be so sure of that? We'll hardly be able to pay our tuition costs. And how can you buy a house with no money? How are we going to make a living? How?-"

Sirius closed his eyes for a moment. Mary could be so tense sometimes. Why couldn't she just let things be and deal with things when they got there? He sighed before placing a warm hand on her cheek, looking her deep in the eyes and repeating: "Mare, calm down. We'll figure something out. It is going to be alright."

She looked at him for a moment and the panic in her eyes slowly ebbed away. She smiled and shook her head. "I was rattling again, wasn't I?"

He grinned. "Like a maniac. But you're my cute rattling maniac."

Mary chuckled and shot a look at their packed suitcases near the front door. "I really don't want to," she pouted, "but we should be going home. My parents are expecting us."

Sirius groaned, but he grabbed her hand, led her inside the bedroom and closed the balcony doors. "I will check us out. You wait here, okay?"

Mary nodded and sat down on a chair. Sirius quickly descended the stairs and as soon as he'd checked out by the nice Greek reception lady, he hurried back upstairs. When he entered their room, Mary smiled at him and got up from her chair. Sirius noticed she had changed into his favorite beautiful yellow dress that was making her look even more tanned. Her long hair fell over her back when she reached for her bag that was lying on the bed. His eyes shot from Mary to the bed and back to Mary again. "What time did you say your parents were expecting us?"

"In about fifteen minutes. Why?"

Sirius grinned and pulled her close. "I don't think they would mind if we were a little late, now would they?"

When Sirius and Mary finally _did_ apparate in the backyard of the Woods family, the first thing they noticed was that it was a lot colder in England than it had been in Greece. And wetter. It was pouring with rain and there was a chilly wind. Mary shivered in her thin dress and Sirius quickly reached for a sweater in his bag to pull it over her shoulders.

"Th-Thanks," she said gratefully.

"Come, let's head inside," he said before lifting the suitcases with his wand. He transported the luggage to the kitchen while Mary sprinted to the door, holding his sweater over her head. She quickly opened the door and helped getting their suitcases and bags inside. Sirius quickly stepped in and closed the door behind him. Even though they had only been out in the rain for a minute, both of them were soaking wet. He shook his head to prevent drops of water from dripping into his eyes. Mary was just handing him his sweater so he could dry off his face with it when she got suddenly pulled into a close hug by Mrs. Woods. "Mary, you're home!"

She shot Sirius a look over her mothers head. "It's good to see you again, mum."

"Let me take a good look at you," her mother said, eyeing her daughter from head to toe. "You look so tanned and happy and… healthy. Ah and Sirius…"

Mrs. Woods let go of her daughter to pull him into an equally as close hug. "You look great, my boy. Have you kept an eye on my little girl?"

"Mum, I'm not eight anymore," Mary muttered, rolling her eyes.

"No, you're eighteen and that is still young. So did you?" Mrs. Woods asked Sirius.

He smiled. "I didn't leave her out of my sight, Pat. Which was a good thing, considering all those southern European blokes whistling at her."

The two women laughed and looked around when Mr. Woods and Jenna walked into the kitchen. "Ah, there is my eldest daughter and my favorite son-in-law. Well, my only son-in-law, of course." He looked down at Jenna. "Don't you dare…"

She pulled a face. "Never! Guys ugh…"

They all laughed. Mr. Woods hugged Mary and Sirius got jumped by an enthusiastic Jenna before he could shake Mary's father's hand. "So did the camera work?"

"Hang on, you can talk about your holiday in a minute. What would you guys like to drink?" Mrs. Woods interrupted.

"A cup of hot chocolate," Mary said, shivering.

Mrs. Woods lifted an eyebrow. "But honey… It's the middle of Summer!"

"Well, compared to Greece this feels like downright November to me."

"Oh, alright then. What about you?"

"Coffee would be great, Pat," Sirius smiled.

Mrs. Woods smiled back and headed for the kitchen, closely followed by Jenna and Mary, who got pulled along by her little sister.

"Now how about that camera…" Mr. Woods said as soon as the three ladies had entered the kitchen.

Sirius laughed and pulled the camera out of his bag. "It was fine as long as Mary wasn't messing around with it."

"Ah," Mr. woods smiled wryly. "Mary and technology: a lethal combination."

Sirius chuckled. "You can say that again. We had to redo our trip to Spain because she'd deleted those pictures by accident."

Mary's father roared with laughter. When the others came back with drinks and snacks and Mary put down a glass of wine in front of him, he patted her arm and smiled. "That's my girl," he sniggered.

"What?" Mary asked while shooting a suspicious look at Sirius who tried to look innocent, but she could not be fooled. "Sirius told you about the camera, didn't he?"

"What about it?" Jenna asked as she sat down and eyed the camera curiously.

"That it's better if I don't have anything to do with it. And neither should you," Mary said as she got hold of Jenna's hand when her sister reached for the camera.

"How long will it take you to develop the images?" Mr. Woods asked.

"Well," Sirius repied, sipping his coffee. "I could make them right now. I mean, I already bought the special photographic parchment. All I need now is a dark room and my wand and then I can be ready in about… thirty minutes?"

"What are we waiting for?" Mr. Woods said, standing up. "Would you mind if I join you? I'd love to see how it works."

Sirius nodded and he followed Mary's father to the study room. He used his wand to carefully transport the images from the camera to the pieces of photographic parchment. Slowly at first, so that an awed Mr. Woods wouldn't miss anything. Once Sirius had shown him a few times, he sped up the process and after another forty-five minutes, they were done.

Sirius and Mr. Woods walked back to the living room and sat down, placing the pictures all over the table. Mary walked over to Sirius and sat down on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and enjoyed it when she was laughing over one of the pictures she had made where Sirius looked no less than exhausted after trying to climb the Eiffel Tower as quickly as possible.

Mary and Sirius told Mr. and Mrs. Woods and Jenna all about their adventures. They spent hours talking about the immense pile of pictures. It was already past midnight when Jenna started to yawn and Mary's father resolutely sent all of them straight to bed.

Sirius and Mary spent the next few days in peace. They filled their days with taking care of the horses, wandering through the forest and hanging out in the garden. Thankfully, the weather cleared up rather soon and the final days of August were sunny and warm.

One day, when Mary and Jenna were cleaning out the stables and Sirius was brushing a horse called Ivanka and her newborn foal Bénin, they were discussing whether the famous bull races of Pamplona should be forbidden. "I think they should," Jenna said, leaning on her shovel. "It's not fair to the bulls."

"I agree," Mary chimed in while disseminating a bale of straw in one of the boxes. "No matter how you look at it, it still remains a violation against animal rights."

"But what about the cultural meaning?" Sirius refuted. "The festival of Los Sanfermines has brought civilizations together for ages."

"Any society that prides itself in bringing different cultures together by molesting animals should take another look at the possibilities," said an amused voice behind them.

The three of them turned around and Jenna's mouth fell open. Albus Dumbledore was standing in the hallway. To say that the Headmaster of Hogwarts in his dark blue robes standing in the Woods barn looked surreal would be an understatement.

"Professor Dumbledore!" Mary said while quickly wiping her dirty hands on her jeans. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just dropping by. And I would prefer it if you called me Albus from now on," he smiled before looking at Jenna. "Are you looking forward to your first term at Hogwarts?"

Jenna nodded and said breathlessly: "Oh yes sir, I am! I've already been to Diagon Alley. Sirius and Mary took me and we bought a wand and a cauldron and potion ingredients and books and an owl and-"

"-Don't forget to breathe, Jenna," Sirius observed while shooting the excited girl an amused look, but Dumbledore merely smiled. "Well Jenna, It is always a privilege to welcome eager first years at Hogwarts and I'm sure you'll do just as well as your sister. Would you mind giving us some privacy?"

"Yes sir!" Jenna nodded, put her shovel against the wall and sprinted out of the barn, no doubt heading straight home to inform her parents on what just happened.

"Delightful girl," Dumbledore said, smiling as he walked towards Sirius and his horses and patted the foal on its neck. "What is the name of this little beauty?"

"Bénin," Sirius said.

"Ah, the "benevolent" in French," Dumbledore nodded and he chuckled at Sirius's surprised look. "You can never speak too few languages, Sirius."

"I suppose so, sir. Eh Albus," Sirius he quickly. "Not to be impolite, but why are you here?"

Dumbledore wiped some hay from a box and sat down. "Mary, I trust that Professor Zabini told you about the Order earlier this year?"

Mary nodded as she walked over to Dumbledore and Sirius. "He mentioned raising an army and defeating Voldemort, yes."

Dumbledore shot her a piercing look over his moon-like spectacles. "Defeating would be a bit audacious, but we're certainly determined to put a stop on his current rise of power."

"Have you come to ask if Mary and I want to join your… group of fighters or eh soldiers?" Sirius asked.

Dumbledore smiled. "We call ourselves the Order of the Phoenix, Sirius, and you must understand that I would never force any of you to join us. But considering that you are close to your friends, I figured you might be interested after all. And let's not forget that both of you are particularly skilled wizards. You belonged to the top of your year."

"Hang on," Sirius said. "So James and Lily are part of this… Order now?"

Dumbledore nodded. "And so Remus and Brice, and Peter. But like I said, no one is forcing you to join up as well."

He frowned. Part of him was more than willing to sign up right now: anything that could be done against Voldemort, Death Eaters or whatever that had something to do with proud pureblood families sounded like music to his ears. But there was another part of him that was having doubts; the part that, above all, wanted to look after Mary. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her.

As if Dumbledore had been reading his mind, he said gently: "Of course we'd be fortunate to have you, Sirius as a future Auror, and you Mary, a future Healer among us, but I must emphasize that there are certain risks involved."

"How many Order-members are there at this point?" Mary asked after a moment of silence.

"The two of you included, twenty-four brave souls," the Headmaster replied.

Mary looked genuinely surprised. "You gathered so many people in such a short amount of time?"

Dumbledore looked at her for a moment before he understood what she was talking about. "Ah, Zabini told you I was _raising_ an army, correct?"

When she nodded, he smiled. "I made him promise to do that, in case you would pass on the secret to the entire student population of Hogwarts and I needed to have a good reason to put out the rumor. Truth is that the Order has been around for quite some time. In fact, it was found years ago, right after Voldemort came into view."

Sirius looked at Mary, who was thinking over Dumbledore's words. He wished she would look at him, so he could read her mind. He really wanted to join the Order and was guessing that Mary was feeling the same way, but if she _was_ having any doubts, he would respect her decision. To his immense relief he didn't have to, because Mary was making the decision for them.

She smiled. "Well, all I can say is that it would be wrong to _not_ join the Order. If the current society will be the world where future generations will grow up when nobody does anything about it, I know that is certainly not what I want. Not for us, not for my sister and certainly not our future children. I don't about you…" She shot a quick look at him. "But I really think that joining this group is the right thing to do."

Sirius looked into her eyes and nodded. "I couldn't have said it better myself, Albus. Where do we sign up?"

"Words can hardly express how pleased I am with this decision," Dumbledore said solemnly as he got up from the box and wiped the back of his robes. "There are no legal documents to be signed or Unbreakable Vows to be made. Your word of loyalty is more than enough. Ah, it is time for me to go. Hagrid and I are supposed to meet up with Professor Flitwick and Slughorn for our weekly Wizard's Poker night. Before I forget," he said, pulling a small piece of parchment from of his robes and giving it to Sirius. "This is the Order's Headquarters. It's a London based pub called The Dove. The next meeting will take place on Tuesday night. It will be the first meeting for the others as well. I suggest you meet up with them before you come down to the pub?"

Dumbledore winked and almost soundlessly disapparated within the blink of an eye. Mary looked at the parchment in Sirius's hands. "We have a _Headquarters_?"

"Apparently so," he grinned before putting the parchment safely in his jeans. He was about to get back to brushing the horses, when he noticed that Mary was shooting him a doubtful look. "What?"

She shrugged. "Are we really doing the right thing here? I know that's what I just told Dumbledore, but… The danger is just… I dunno."

Sirius pulled her towards him and hugged her close. "I would never let anything happen to you. You know that, right?"

He felt Mary nod in his embrace. She sighed against his chest. "But it's impossible to protect me from everything," she whispered.

"Look, if it ever becomes too dangerous, we will drop out at once."

Mary looked up at him with her enchanting blue eyes. "Promise?"

Sirius kissed her tenderly before whispering back: "Promise."

He could literally feel her relax in his arms. She smiled and sniggered. "But you know, all things considered, did we really do the right thing?"

"I'm sure we did. In fact, I believe it is the only way," Sirius said as confidently as he could, but even though Mary didn't notice, it was impossible for him to ignore that terse little voice inside that was telling him that they might have just made the biggest mistake of their lives.

End of Update


	40. The Order of the Phoenix

**A/N ****– Thanks for all the comments. Like I said before, they make me very happy. I noticed some of you are already wondering how this fic is going to end, but of course I cannot (and won't!) tell you anything about it. All I can say is that this story will end in line with canon, but before we get to that point: **_**a lot**_** of other stuff is going to happen. So you better stay tuned and for now, enjoy this chapter. R&R please! –Mara.**

**Chapter Forty**

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Brice asked while staring at the sign above the ancient-looking door of the pub The Dove.

It was Tuesday night and they were about to attend their very first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. Sirius and Mary met the others at James and Lily's place earlier that day and they had dinner together before apparating to the place they were standing right now: in front of a very old and traditional-looking pub in London. 

Remus, who was standing next to Brice, put his arm around her. "Well, I don't know… Can you think of another 17th century pub called The Dove which can be found near the Tames?"

Brice looked at him and narrowed her eyes. "Are you making fun of me?"

Remus winked and chuckled. "I wouldn't dare."

"But it _is_ a bit of a weird spot for the Headquarters of a secret group," Mary noted while shooting an inspecting look at the brown shutters. "In the middle of Muggle London, I mean."

James, standing next to her, shrugged. "Weird or ingenious?" he said before walking to the door and opening it with a flourish. "Ladies first, he grinned at her.

Mary looked over her shoulder at Sirius before stepping through the door first, closely followed by the others. She hadn't really known what to expect from this Headquarters, but she certainly hadn't put her money on what she was walking into. The Dove happened to be the most ordinary Muggle pub oneuld think of. There wasn't a single wizard inside. A Rolling Stones-record was playing and some Muggle guests were sitting at the tables or the bar, enjoying a pint or reading the paper.

"Now _I'm_ starting to doubt if we have come to the right place as well," Lily whispered to Sirius.

"Can I help you?" a grumpy voice suddenly sounded behind them.

The peevish-looking bartender, who Mary assumed was the owner, was polishing a glass with a tablecloth while shooting a suspicious look at their travelling robes.

Sirius shot him his most charming smile. "We were told to come here and attend a… eh… meeting of…-"

"-The Merlin Theatrical Company?" the bartender interrupted grumpily, polishing the glass with so much effort as if he was trying to break it.

Sirius exchanged a glance with James before nodding confidently. "Yes, that's right. The Merlin Theatrical Company."

The bartender frowned at their robes one last time before pointing the glass to the stairs near a distant corner of the pub. "Upstairs, first door to your left."

Mary looked at Lily when they were following the others to the back of the pub. "The Merlin Theatrical Company?" she whispered and could not suppress a giggle.

"It's quite a good cover-up when you think about it," Lily replied. "As long as the pub-owner doesn't expect us to actually do a play. Can you imagine Dumbledore performing in… let's say My Fair Lady or The Phantom of the Opera?"

They had arrived on the first floor and paused in front of the door. "Should we knock?" Peter asked nervously. Before any of them could reply, the door opened from the other side and Hagrid appeared in the door-opening.

"Hagrid?!" they all called, looking stunned, and he chuckled. "I've been lookin' forward teh tonigh'! In fact, we've all been waitin' fer yeh teh show up. Come in, come in," the Hogwarts Gamekeeper grinned before pulling James inside by the collar of his robes.

Sirius, taking Mary along by the hand, walked into the room next, closely followed by the others. Mary noticed they had walked into a large meeting room. There was a fireplace in the back, one large wooden table in the centre of the room and, according to Mary because they were supposed to act like an actual theatrical group, a tall stage in the corner. Some witches and wizards – none of them looked familiar - were sitting at the table, mumbling to each other while studying complicated-looking maps and scribbling down notes on scrolls of parchment.

They looked up at the newcomers at the same time and smiled. Dumbledore had just entered the room from the corridor and beamed at them. "Ah, right on time. Welcome. I trust you found us without too much trouble."

"Hardly," James grinned. "I mean, after we made it through the audition with that grouchy pub-owner downstairs, we were fine."

Dumbledore chuckled. "I agree that it does look rather suspicious that after almost seven years, our theatrical group has not performed in a single play. Perhaps next Christmas… Come to think of it, I _do_ know this rather charming piece about two hags and a goblin travelling to a distant cabin… Well never mind, we have other - more important I might add - matters on our mind. Please join us and introduce yourselves to most of our Order veterans."

After shooting some doubtful looks at each other, James and Lily were the first ones to walk to the table and sit down next to a kind-looking witch and wizard who started to talk to them at once. Peter scurried after Remus and Brice, who walked up to Hagrid, sitting at the other side of the table.

Sirius and Mary were the last two standing near the door. She looked at him, who smiled and pulled her along to the last spare seats at the table. Mary sat down and watched Sirius animatedly taking to a blonde intelligent-looking witch called Marlene McKinnon for a moment. After another while - right when she was starting to feel at ease and curiously eyed the other Order members – she turned around and found herself staring right into the battered face of a scary-looking man, not in the least because of the huge magical eye in one of his sockets.

"You're Woods, right?" he asked hoarsely.

"Eh yes," she replied politely, tyring hard to disuise that his rather sinister appearance had just scared the hell out of her. "I'm Mary."

"Alastor Moody, or Mad-Eye. I'm an Auror," Moody said, holding out his hand.

When she took it, his handshake was firm and his skin felt extremely rough but Moody grinned at her and, as he picked up his goblet of elf-wine, said: "I've heard some good things about you."

Mary looked suprised. "Really?"

"Zabini."

"Professor Zabini is part of this Order?"

Moody started to laugh manically and she tried to avoid staring at his magical eye which was spinning around at an alarming speed. "Not only is he a member," Moody grunted while wiping his mouth. "Sean was one of the founders. And you should know that he is no longer a Hogwarts Professor."

"But I thought… Well, I got the impression that he liked to teach."

Moody chuckled. "Sharing his own achievements and adventures with the rest of the world, you mean. But he hasn't stopped being a teacher. In fact, James and Sirius will see a lot more of him over the next few years."

"He's involved with the Auror Program?"

Moody nodded. "And ever so devastated that you decided to become a Healer after all, although your profession will be very beneficial for the Order. There can never be enough Healers in the group."

Mary looked around the table as she sipped her wine. "There are more Healers in the Order?"

"Yes," Moody grunted while pointing at the other side of the table. "That bearded man sitting next to… Lily, is it? That's Edgar Bones. He's Chief of the Creature-Induced Injuries department and the dark haired witch talking to that mousy looking boy-"

"Peter," Mary intervened shortly, feeling indignant about Moody calling her friend mousy.

"-That's Dorcas Meadows," Moody continued in an undisturbed voice, as if he hadn't noticed Mary's annoyed tone at all. "She knows everything about Artefact Accidents. You will get to know them well and I'm confident that they'll always like to help you once you've start your traineeship at St. Mungo's."

When Mary looked over at Edgar, he looked up at the same time and - noticing she was watching him - gave her a wink. He had a kind face and Mary smiled at him before looking back at Moody. She wondered if she should ask him a particular question when she wasn't that keen on founding out the answer. After another moment of silence, she sighed and asked: "So… Is this Order business eh… as eh… dangerous as it seems?"

Moody shot her a close look and Mary started to feel nauseated because she couldn't stop looking at the rapidly spinning magical eye. "Are you having second thoughts?"

Mary shot a quick look at Sirius who was laughing at a joke Hagrid and the Prewett brothers just cracked before shaking her head. "No, that's not it. The thing is… I want to help, I really do, but I just don't fancy a premature death."

Moody shrugged. "I wish I could tell you otherwise, but it's a war. Being part of the resistance involves some risks, as I'm sure Dumbledore told you."

"He did and we are aware of that, but sometimes it feels like I'm… I'm the only one who realizes that this is some risky business."

Moody shifted uncomfortably in his seat and coughed. "Really, you ought to talk to Dumbledore about this, or your boyfriend over there, but the way I see it: you _always_ have a choice. If your heart is not completely devoted to the Order, step out while you still can. But do not make the mistake of thinking that Voldemort will spare you if you decide to lay low and do nothing. Either he or his Death Eaters will cross your path one way or the other eventually."

He shot her another inspecting look and Mary smiled weakly. "It's not that I don't… Look, I'm confident that Sirius and I made the right decision to join, but I am not ignoring the possible mortal danger we have gotten ourselves into either."

Moody nodded. "Very wise. Being cautious is a gift everyone possesses, but little people cherish it. Still, you shouldn't need to worry that much. If you really are such an extraordinary dueller Zabini says you are…"

Mary blushed and quickly sipped her wine to withdraw the attention from her flustered face. Thankfully, that was the moment Dumbledore decided to officially open the meeting. "Welcome my friends. I'm pleased that so many of you are present. Tonight we shall discuss our next course of action concerning the disappearance of Benjy Fenwick, but more of that later. First, I'd like to welcome seven new members. Naturally, as Headmaster of Hogwarts, I am not allowed to be partial in any way, but I must admit that this particular group of friends has become one of my favorites over the years."

"Hear, hear!" Hagrid bellowed and he raised his pint, which was the size of a large bucket.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled and Mary could swear he winked at Hagrid before continuing: "I am honored to count them among the Order of the Phoenix from now on: James Potter, Lily Evans, Remus Lupin, Brice McDonald, Sirius Black, Mary Woods and Peter Pettigrew."

Every present Order member rose from their seats; they wolfwhistled and applauded them for almost an entire minute before Dumbledore ushered them to sit back down. "I'll explain the main duties of the Order to you later. Right now, it's important to inform you on what happened to Benjy Fenwick. Benjy is one of our resident Squib members. Last Thursday, when he was supposed to spy on Death Eaters Karkaroff and Travers, he vanished without a trace. Now Gideon, I believe you were the last one who talked to Benjy."

A broad shouldered man with auburn hair nodded rimly. "I ran in to him in the Leaky Cauldron right before he would started tailing Karkaroff. I've drawn his possible route on this map."

Dumbledore peered down the piece of parchment Gideon had just given him. "And there was no sign of struggle at his house?"

A small blonde witch with a round, friendly face called Alice Longbottom shook her head. "Frank and I searched Benjy's place yesterday, but everything looked as it should be. A bit messy, but let's not forget it's Benjy we're talking about."

Some members of the Order sniggered and Mary shot a surprised look at Remus who couldn't hide a grin and pulled a face, which made her mouth twitch. This caught Sirius's attention as he gently squeezed her hand and whispered: "What's so funny?"

Mary, trying to ignore Moody's magical eye which was staring at them, whispered back: "Nothing, Remus just did something funny."

Dumbledore had put down the parchment and was studying it more closely.

"It just doesn't make sense that Benjy lost track of Karkaroff and Travers," Frank Longbottom said thoughtfully. "He was so determined to make up for his mistake on last month's magical book-mission."

No one spoke for a moment. They were all watching Dumbledore and he was still engaged in studying Gideon's map when James unexpectedly and somewhat hesitantly spoke up. "But… you said that this guy Benjy is a Squib, right?"

"Yes," Frank said, narrowing his eyes at James. "Do you have something against that?"

"No, not at all," James replied quickly. "But it's just… Squibs aren't able to apparate."

Frank stared at him for a moment before he nodded. "I think I get what you're saying."

"Yeah," James continued more confidently. "What if Karkaroff and Travers diapparated?"

"Even so," Marlene pondered. "That still doesn't explain why Benjy got lost. If the Death Eaters diapparated, then he would have been forced to give up the tracking and should have warned one of us instead."

"Unless…" Sirius said slowly and the entire table turned to look at him. "Karkaroff and Travers were aware of the fact that Benjy was following them. What if they diapparated to a distant spot where Benjy could still see them and lured him into a trap?"

For the first time that night, there was complete silence. The only noise that could be heard was the crackling fire and the muffled pub noises from below. "Eh…" Sirius said, hanging his head. "I'm sorry. That probably didn't make any sense."

"On the contrary," Moody said in his low hoarse voice. "That might have been exactly what happened to Fenwick." He shot Sirius an estimating look. "You and Potter are going to do well at the Auror Program. I like the way your brains work."

"Thanks!" Sirius grinned and Mary could see that James was also glowing with pride.

"So what are we going to do to help Benjy?" Gideon asked while conjuring some more bottles of elf-wine out of thin air.

"I believe that the only possibility is to get hold of either Karkaroff or Travers, or both which would be even better and demand an explanation. Before handing them over to Crouch of course," Dumbledore added with a wry smile. "Any volunteers to track them down?"

The hands of James and Sirius shot in the air at once, closely followed by Remus and then by a slightly wavering Peter. Mary shot an awkward look at Lily and Brice and, as they looked back at her, for the first time she also noticed a flicker of apprehension in her friend's eyes. Dumbledore however, who was looking at the guys, did not notice this and smiled. "I appreciate the enthusiasm, but I think it would be wise to build up a little more experience before I'll ask you to risk your lives for the Order. Moody, Marlene, Frank and Alice, how about you?"

When they nodded, Dumbledore handed Gideon's map to Marlene and stood up. "I suppose this is the end of tonight's meeting. Should nothing unexpected happen in the meantime, I suggest we meet again next Tuesday night. Any objections?"

Everyone mumbled approvingly and some members ot up immediately, apologizing for the fact that they had to head home to their families at once. Others however lingered and continued to talk to the newcomers while enjoying a few more drinks. Mary, Sirius and the others belonged to the members who remained behind and chatted with their new "colleagues". Mary talked with the Healer called Dorcas and she learned some interesting things about St. Mungo's and the Professors of the Healing Program. After another hour, the remaining Order members decided to also call it a night and headed home.

In Mary and Sirius's case, that meant travelling back to the Woods' residence. Mary was growing weary of being forced to live on her parents property, but since they didn't have enough money to buy a place of their own, they simply didn't have a choice.

The next morning Mary was sitting in the garden while studying one of her new books (Poisons and Antidotes) which she should have read before the first term of the Healing Program kicked off. Sirius was engaged in the Daily Prophet while relaxing on a stretcher when they suddenly heard a loud hooting sound.

"Is that an owl?" Mary frowned, looking up from her book.

Sirius got up and nodded. "Yeah, I think so. Look, there it is… Hang on!"

"What?" she asked curiously as she also got up and watched how a large white owl landed right in front of Sirius.

"I know this owl. It's Tiberius, he belongs to my great uncle Alphard."

"He's gorgeous," Mary whispered admiringly as she stroke Tiberius's pearly white wings while Sirius removed an official-looking letter from its talon. He quickly opened the letter and started to frown as he was reading the content.

"What is it?"

"This letter is from a notary. It says uncle Alphard died a week ago."

Mary shot him a sympathetic look and put a hand on his arm. "That's awful, sweetie, I'm sorry."

Sirius looked up from reading the remaining part of the letter and shot her a dazed look. "Huh, what?"

"I'm sorry your uncle died."

"Oh right. Never mind about that." Mary didn't exactly know how to respond to his indifferent behaviour and must have looked confused, because he started to laugh. "Mare, I haven't seen uncle Alphard since I was nine years old, right before he got disowned by my family."

"He got disowned as well?"

Sirius snorted. "Take another look at this owl. Using a _snow white_ owl when you're a Black: an act of rebellion that has got uncle Alphard written all over it. He always had that sarcastic sense of humor."

Mary laughed and Sirius turned his attention back to the letter. His frown deepened when he read the final part and then – rereading the final sentences - he lifted his eyebrows in surprise. Mary felt like she was dying with curiosity. She had to restrain herself from jerking the letter out of his hands. Instead, she asked him eagerly: "What does it say, Sirius?"

He finally looked at her. His mesmerizingly grey eyes were twinkling and for a moment, Mary couldn't read his mind. The letter obviously carried some good news, since Sirius was wearing that arrogant smirk she had been despising for almost six years, but she had no idea what it could be about. Finally Sirius – still smirking – said teasingly: "Didn't I tell you it would be alright?"

"Huh?"

"That night on Rhodes! Didn't I tell you things would sort themselves out?"

"Yeah, but how- Sirius! Oh come on, put me down!" Mary had started but got interrupted by Sirius who happily lifted her up in his arms and swung her around. When he finally put her back down, she asked: "_Now_ will you tell me what the hell is going on?"

Sirius grinned and kissed her passionately before finally showing the notary's letter. When Mary realised what amount of money he was inheriting from his late uncle, her mouth fell open. She couldn't quite speak for a moment.

Sirius on the other hand was still grinning when he boomed: "We're RICH, that is what's going on!"

End of Update


	41. A New Place To Live

**Chapter Forty-One**

Three weeks later, on a particularly sunny Saturday morning at the end of September, Mary was looking around the new appartment she and Sirius had bought a few days ago. They had never expected to find such an amazing house so soon, but Dorcas Meadows had tipped them off about this wonderful place, and they didn't need to think twice about buying it.

The idyllic-looking house had two floors and was located above a flower shop. It wasn't that big, but there was more than enough room for the two of them _and_ it was situated in the very hart of London, just a few blocks away from Diagon Alley. Sirius, Mary and the others had been busy moving in their stuff most part of the morning. It was now almost noon and while the guys were still carrying furniture and moving boxes upstairs, Lily and Brice had left to buy them some sandwiches for lunch.

Mary carefully put a box of kitchen supplies on the sink, wondering if she should use magic to put the plates and bowls in the cabinets, when she heard a stumble on the stairs. She turned and walked out of the kitchen to see who it was.

A rather sweaty Remus stumbled into the room, having trouble to carry a heavy-looking box of study books. He dropped it a few feet from the doorstep and groaned as he got back up. "How many bloody books are in there?" he panted, nursing his back.

Mary laughed and put her long hair up in a high ponytail as she walked towards him. "My healing books and about a dozen of auror-related books and essays from Sirius. Are you alright?"

He groaned. "I think my back broke down halfway the stairs."

"Awww you poor thing," Mary said, shooting him a concerned look.

Remus smiled wryly. "It's also because the full moon is drawing closer. I'm always more sensitive to muscle aches during this time of the month. But if you want to take a look at my back…"

Mary lifted an eyebrow. "Are you sure? I only just started at the Healer program. I'm pretty sure I don't have the power to cure back aches yet."

"Never mind then," Remus grinned before pulling out his wand. "D'you mind if I use magic to transport this box to the other ones in the corner?"

"No, go ahead. Just as long as you keep the use of magic limited to our house. I don't want to scare our downstairs neighbour and flourist Mr. Hammond on our very first day here and-"

Mary got interrupted mid-sentence by several loud bumps. They seemed to come from the stairway. Their cat Coco, who was sititng on the window-still, meowed in a disgruntled way and Mary and Remus exchanged a worried glance before the two of them hurried to the hallway. The very moment they looked down the staircase, she noticed that a magically reduced but still large bed was rapidly flying up the stairs. Remus pulled her down just in time before the bed zoomed right over their heads and came to an abrupt stop by crashing into the wall near the front door with a loud thump, making stone-dust fly everywhere.

Mary coughed as she crawled back up and stared at the bed with a frown on her face until she heard Sirius, James and Peter coming up the stairs. "Hey love!" Sirius said happily and he kissed her on the cheek.

Mary did not return his smile. "What is the meaning of this?" she demanded as she pointed at the bed.

He grinned proudly. "Just a neat trick to avoid having to haul the bed with a pulley block. Which we don't have, by the way."

"Really? And what did Mr. Hammond say when he witnessed you reducing and transporting a bed up the stairs with a wooden stick?"

Sirius rolled his eyes and James and Peter laughed. "I'm sure Hammond didn't see anything, Mary," James said reassuringly.

Mary - ignoring James - kept staring at Sirius and, putting her hands on her hips, said: "Remind me, what did we agree on when it comes to transporting furniture by magic?"

Sirius – not faltering one bit under her annoyed glance – replied. "That it would be alright to use magic when Muggles aren't around and like James said, Hammond didn't see anything."

Remus cleared his throat. "Mary, I'm sure Padfoot, Prongs and Wormtail knew what they were doing."

"Yeah," Peter chimed in. "The last time I saw Hammond, the poor bloke was trying to sell a bouquet of fresia's to a particular demanding – and apparently very deaf – old lady."

Mary – notcing she was losing this battle - rolled her eyes. "Fine," she snapped. "But I want you to move the bookcase by hand, just in case."

James groaned. "Do you have any idea how heavy that bookcase is? Even a giant would have trouble lifting up that thing!"

She shrugged. "Alright, then I'll help carrying it too."

She turned back and was about to head down the stairs when Sirius grabbed her by the waist and hugged her close. "Sorry, but I cannot let you do that, love."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want you to risk damaging your pretty face by carrying anything heavy."

Mary, unable to help herself, blushed fiercely. "Charmer," she muttered darkly.

Sirius smirked and planted a kiss on her glowing cheek. "Are we cool again?"

Mary looked into his meserizing twinkling grey eyes and smiled. "Yeah."

At that moment Brice and Lily walked up the stairs, carrying large bags of sandwiches, fruit and bottles of milk and mineral water. They decided to take a break and had lunch together in the littered living room. Remus, Brice, Lily and Peter sat down on the couch while the others used a stool or a box to sit on. Mary conjured cups of coffee and tea and poured some milk on a saucer. She put the dish down for Coco, who jumped from her window-still at once and purred gratefully before starting to lick up the milk.

After they had lunch, the guys decided to try and borrow a pulley block from one of the surrounding shopowners. The girls remained in the house to unpack as many boxes as possible. Instead of furnishing a different room of the house, they decided to foucs on the kitchen together first and then move on to the bedroom.

Lily charmed a mop and sponge to clean out the cabinets and Brice used magic to clean a particularly dirty-looking oven. Mary used her wand to move around the vacuum cleaner. Coco, who had climbed back up the window-sill, eyed the moving cleaning device suspiciously and hissed whenever it came too close.

Mary had been looking forward to being alone with Lily and Brice for the first time in weeks, so she could talk about her doubts concerning the guys (and mostly James and Sirius's) enthusiasm to actively participate in Order missions. Two weeks ago, when James and Sirius had only been in the Auror Program for four days, they were determined to join Moody and Zabini on a dangerous mission (even Dumbledore was unable to bring them around) and succeeded in capturing and killing one Death Eater called Wilkes.

Sirius had come home with countless bruises and a particularly nasty cut in his neck, which took Mary – still quite unexperienced in healing – hours to heal. He didn't mind her bungling at all, considering he was too excited telling her about how he and Moody cornered Wilkes together while James and Zabini battled against the other present Death Eaters, who managed to flee before they could be arrested or killed.

To her surprise Mary didn't even need to bring up the subject herself, because it was Lily who suddenly hesitantly asked: "Am I the only who is scared of what might be lying ahead of us?"

Brice, knowing what her friend was referring to, pulled her head out of the oven and nodded and Mary sighed. "You won't believe how glad I am to hear you say that. I'm scared to death thinking what could happen to us."

Brice wiped her forehead and said quietly: "I'm really worried what could happen to Remus when his boss finds out that he's been tracking possible Death Eaters within the Ministry. I mean, he only just started at the Magical Law Enforcement Squad. It was so hard for him to find a job and now that he has one… I'm just worried."

Mary sat down on the kitchen table and took a swig of water. "I'm sure Remus won't get caught, Brice. And no offense, but he and Peter weren't part of that dangerous mission which killed Wilkes. Did James look just as knocked about as Sirius?"

Lily nodded. "His entire body covered in bruises. Not that he was feeling any pain, he was too excited informing me on his excellent duelling moves."

"Are you guys considering to drop out of the Order?" Brice asked.

Mary shrugged. "Moody said that wouldn't make much difference. And I agree; people close to us will vanish or get killed anyway, even if we remain neutral. Besides, now I can live with myself. I would hate to be a coward and not do the right thing."

"I guess you're right," Lily said grimly. "Did you hear Alison's dad - and Zabini's brother – got killed by Voldemort last week?"

Mary shot her a shocked look. "No, I didn't. Poor Allison… How did she take it?"

"I don't know, I haven't talked to her since graduation."

"You know what bothers me the most?" Brice suddenly said. "Why are we the only ones who are realizing that something might go terribly wrong?"

Despite the gloomy atmosphere in the kitchen, Mary snorted. "I dunno… Men are from Mars, women from Venus, that sort of thing?"

Lily chuckled, but Brice didn't laugh. "Seriously, I've tried talking to Remus about this several times, but he always says that it's going to be alright, that I'm worrying too much and that Dumbledore knows what he's doing."

"I do trust Dumbledore, actually," Lily said sincerely. "I'm confident that as soon as any of the guys becomes reckless, he will step in."

Mary smiled. "Well, I guess we have to put our faith in Dumbledore, then. Although Sirius has already promised me we will step out when being part of the Order becomes life-threatening."

"That's sweet," Lily smiled but Brice shot her a sceptical look. "And you believe that? Mary, this is _Sirius_ we're talking about."

"So?" Mary asked, looking confused.

"We all know Sirius is extremely loyal, to his _friends_. I sincerely doubt he'll ever step out of the Order, no matter how dangerous it gets."

"Whaaaaat?" Lily said. "Are you crazy? Sirius loves Mary more than anything in the world."

"I'm not contradicting that. But would Sirius actually put her in first place when his friends are in mortal danger? Don't count your Galleons on that, that's all I'm saying."

"Then we're destined to disagree on that, Brice," Mary said shortly. "He promised and I trust him." Her friend shrugged. "I hope I'm wrong about this, I really do. Or actually… I just hope that being part of the Order will never get so dangerous people will have to drop out."

After that, the tree of them got back to cleaning the kitchen and putting things in place, each drowned in their own thoughts. Mary thought about what Brice said. She knew that Sirius's friends meant the world to him, but surely he wouldn't put her in danger by choosing them over her? She thought about mentioning any of this to him later on, but two seconds later she had already decided that she wasn't going to do that. She trusted Sirius completely and – determindedly wiping her doubts off the table – concluded that Brice had been talking nonsense.

Mary, Lily and Brice were just carrying some boxes up to the bedroom which was located on the second floor when the guys returned with a battered-looking pully block. "This is the only thing we could find," James said.

"So if this thing breaks halfway heaving that expensive looking bookcase, don't say we didn't warn you," Remus said, grinning at Mary as he hugged Brice close and gave her a kiss.

Mary shot a weary look at the rusty pully block. "That thing is never going to hold the bookcase."

"No, probably not," Peter replied cheerfully.

Mary looked at Sirius, who was leaning against the doorpost, looking completely at ease and very sexy as he did so. "Are there any Muggles present downstairs?" she asked.

"Not a soul," he said with twinkling eyes.

She laughed. "Fine, you win. Would you please go and magically reduce that closet and bring it up here?"

Sirius – clearly enjoying his little victory – smirked. "I thought you'd never ask," he replied, winking at her before heading back down, the other guys following him closely.

Brice sniggered before picking up another box. "He is never going to make you forget this."

Mary groaned. "I know, did you see that smirk?" she huffed before suddenly laughing aloud. "Sometimes I still can't stand myself for falling in love with such an arrogant git."

Brice laughed and carried her box upstairs while Lily chuckled as she put an arm around Mary. "Trust me when I say that I know _exactly_ what you mean."

- - - - - - - - - -

The next evening Mary was unpacking boxes of clothes in the bedroom and put them in the wardrobe. She was waiting for Sirius to get home from school, because he was going to take her out to dinner to celebrate they had moved in together. He was nearly twenty minutes late already, but this didn't concern her that much. She knew Sirius wasn't the most punctual person. She decided to start arranging their wardobe to pass the time until he got home.

She was just putting Sirius's extensive collection of sweaters on one of the top shelves, when the front door slammed shut. Mary quickly dropped the box of clothes on the floor next to the bed and frolicked down the stairs. Sirius was standing in the door-opening. He grinned at her. "Ready?"

Mary nodded, put on her new white trenchcoat and grabbed her keys. She hesitated when she realized that her boyfreind was grinning a little _too_ broadly for her liking. "What's going on?" she asked, shooting him a suspicious look.

He tried to keep a straight face, but failed miserably and started to laugh. "Damn, I really wanted to surprise you, but you know me too well."

Now it was her time to smirk. "You bet I do," she stated matter-of-factly before taking Sirius by the hand and heading downstairs. When they got outside, Mary was about to turn around and ask what the surprise was when her eyes fell on a shiny motorbike that was parked a few feet ahead of them. She looked back at Sirius and noticed that he was wearing a leather jacket she had never seen on him before. Already knowing – and slightly dreading - the answer, she asked: "Sirius, who's motorbike is that?"

Sirius laughed. "I should have known you wouldn't miss it. It's mine."

Mary closed her eyes for a moment before she turned back and shot Sirius an incredulous look. "You bought a _motorbike_?"

"Yeah," Sirius grinned. "You like?"

"Why in Merlin's name did you buy a bike?" Mary asked, staring at the motorbike with a perplexed look on her face.

"Because I thought it might come in handy and I dreamed of buying one of these ever since I was little."

"How much did it cost?"

He shrugged. "Does that matter? We have enough money to buy thousands of thse without even noticing it."

She frowned and crossed her arms. "Being rich doesn't mean you should waste money on anything that looks remotely fun, Sirius."

"Waste!?" Sirius called, looking indignant.

Mary rolled her eyes. "How can a bike ever be useful when you know how to Apparate?"

Sirius put his arms around her waist from behind and whispered into her ear: "Because it can fly."

Mary turned sideways to shoot him a sceptical look. "So do brooms."

He laughed. "True, but they're not nearly as cool – or fast – as this bike. Come and take a closer look, I promise it's not going to bite you."

He reached for her hand and pulled her towards the motorbike. Mary had to admit it looked very impressive. "Where did you get this?" she asked while letting her hand slide over the soft leather seats.

"A friend of Fabian's at the Ministry. He's got one just like this," he said. "It's a 1977 Honda CX500."

Mary snorted. "Yeah whatever. I would be unable to diverse a Honda from a Harley if it was standing right in front of me."

Sirius smiled and, noticing she was warming up to the idea, said: "Care to go for a ride? I know this lovely little restaurant up near Redbridge."

"What? On this… _thing_?"

"Hu-hum," he mumbled before conjuring a smaller leather jacket out of thin air. "Here, I don't want you to get a cold."

He climbed onto the motorbike and shot her, who was still looking indecisive as she was holding her jacket in her arms, a curious look. "You coming?"

Mary shot him a weary look. "Is it safe?"

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "Are you suggesting that I don't know how to fly a motorbike?"

She laughed and put on the jacket. "Alright, just be careful."

He held out his hand to her. "Do you trust me?"

Mary looked into his sincere eyes and – knowing she trusted him more than anyone else in the world – nodded. "I trust you," she whispered and a grinning Sirius gently pulled her onto the bike behind him. It took them another few minutes before they stopped kissing, so that he could start the engine and make the roaring bike take off into the cold starry sky, disappearing from view to curious Muggle eyes within seconds.

End of Update

**A/N: Okay, the ending probably sounds a little familiar to some of you. I heard people on the other HP-site say it reminded them of Aladdin or Titanic. Anyway, you should know that I wrote this chapter right after participating in a writing challenge where I had to mix up HP with Disney movies. So that explains the um… Aladdin feel of the end of this update. Still, I think it works rather well. –Mara.**


	42. The First Order Mission

**A/N: Here's the next chapter. I can remember someone ordering an action sequence, so here it is. The first one: many more (and better written I might add) will follow. Hope you enjoy. And don't forget to R&R. Thanks! -Mara**

**Chapter Forty-Two:**

Over the next month, Mary and Sirius spend most of the time dividing their attention between school and the Order. Both Auror and Healing Program turned out to be more demanding than they had imagined in their wildest dreams, resulting in having to either study many hours at night or do things for the Order. Which – to the disappointment of James and Sirius – mostly came down to attending meetings and discussing what should be done instead of _actually_ doing something dangerous.

On a Thursday night at the Headquarters, when they were about to attend another meeting to discuss the possible wherabouts of the missing Order-member Benjy Fenwick, Mary, Sirius, Remus, Brice, Frank, Alice and Peter were invesitgating a mobile beer tap in the corner of the room. "The owner must have put it here after yesterday's meeting," Remus reasoned as he looked at Sirius, who was trying to learn Brice how to draw a beer.

"Not like that, Brice. You're holding the glass too straight," Sirius said. "Try to keep it more slant."

The very moment a very focused Brice had slightly turned her glass and pulled the tap, the cask seemed to have run out. A powerful jet of foam shot in and out off the glass, drenching everyone who was standing nearby in beer foam. "Oh no, I'm so sorry!" shee called, looking flustered.

Mary, who wiped her forehead with the sleeve of her robes before using her wand to clean the beer stenches, grinned at her friend. "Nice job, Brice."

She giggled. "Hey, this isn't easy! I'd like to see you try," she said, giving her a wink.

Mary huffed and helt her head up high, adapting the very arrogant look Sirius was famous for. "I know how to draw beer."

"You do?" Remus asked.

"An old friend of my dad's owns a pub," she elaborated before shooting Sirius a curious look. "I'm a little surprised to discover _you_ know, though."

Alice laughed. "Not every pureblood wizard is oblivious to Muggle technology, Mary."

"I know that," Mary said. "But with his family… So who taught you, Sirius?"

"Ted Tonks. A Muggle-born wizard," Sirius explained when he noticed all the blank stares. "He married my cousin Andromeda."

"And she's still part of your family?" Frank asked, frowning.

Sirius smiled wryly. "She married a Muggle-born, what do you think?"

"But compared to that Tonks guy and Andromeda, doesn't that make you and Mary look much better? I mean, at least for now... You are "just" dating after all, not married. Yet."

Sirius and Mary exchanged a dark glance, remembering that day when they and Mary's parents visited Diagon Alley and ran in on Sirius's parents, who ignored them completely. He shook his head. "Not a chance."

At that moment, Dumbledore asked them to join him and start the meeting. After they had sat down at the table, Mary shot Sirius a conerned look. "Where are James and Lily? They should have been here by now."

"Relax, I'm sure there's nothing to worry about," he said reassuringly while pouring her a goblet of elf-wine.

But his answer didn't make her feel much better and while Dumbledore was informing them about the possibility that Benjy was still alive, she repeatedly shot worried looks at the door, waiting for James and Lily to burst in. When they finally did and apologized to Dumbledore for being late before sitting down, Sirius squeezed her hand and whispered: "See?"

Mary rolled her eyes and – while Zabini said something about a mysterious tip-off on Benjy he received two days ago – she kicked Lily under the table and hissed: "Where were you?"

James winked at her and Lily beamed, but neither of them said anything. Lily looked alight with happiness: her emerald eyes twinkled and her auburn hair was shining even more than usual. Mary got the impression that her friend was dying to tell her something, so she smiled and mouthed: "Tell me later."

Lily grinned back and mouthed "OK", before turning her attention to the meeting that ended in an unanimous decision to let Moody and Zabini check the origin of Fabian's tip-off before they would plan a visit to this possible location of Benjy.

As soon as the meeting ended, Lily and James pulled their friends over to a corner near the window. "What's this all about?" Peter asked.

James and Lily looked at each other. "We eh… we have an announcement to make," he said, ruffling his hair nervously.

Sirius chuckled. "What is it with this formal behaviour, Prongs? It's us, you can spill it out," he said as he intertwined his fingers with Mary's.

James snorted. "You're right, Padfoot, who am I kidding? Right… I'm just going to say it then."

He shot a look at every curious face and grinned stupidly. "Well eh, it's like this. Lil and I… Or actually…"

He was taking a deep breath when Mary's eyes fell on Lily's hands. Her friend had been holding them behind her back for most of the evening, until now. She was wearing an elegant and shiny ring that Mary had never seen before. Lily looked up, caught her eye and grinned and Mary suddenly understood what this was all about. Right when James opened his mouth again, she clapped her free hand over her mouth and gasped: "Lil!"

"-I asked Lily to marry me," James said, shooting an odd look at Mary. "And oddly enough… She said yes!"

Mary squeeled happily, let go of a stunned Sirius and hugged her best friend. "I'm so happy for you guys!"

Lily beamed and laughed before turning to hug Brice. "I still cannot believe it. Oh, it was so romantic! James was so nervous in the beginning that I didn't understand what he was rambling about. Once I got the gist of it, I called out yes at once, of course."

"That's awesome, Lily," Brice smiled before reaching for her hand. "Now let me take a good look at that ring of yours."

While Brice was admiring the engagement ring, Mary looked back at a beaming James who was talking to Remus, Sirius, Peter and Frank and Fabian who had come down to see what all the fuss was about. Mary walked over to them and decided to surpise James by jumping onto his back from behind.

"Mary!" James laughed. "What in Merlin's name are you doing?"

She put her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek. "Congratulating you," she said, grinning.

"You could also congratulate him without trying to break his back," Remus suggested.

James laughed as he put gently lowered her back to the ground and put an arm around her shoulders. "She's as light as a feather, Moony. I could carry her all the way to Hogwarts if I had to."

"Thanks," Mary said before wrapping her arm around Sirius's waist. "And I know you are going to make Lily very happy. You better, or I'll kill you," she added, shooting him a quasi-threatening look.

They all laughed. After James and Lily had also been congratulated by Dumbledore and the other present Order members, they decided to call it an early night and went home. Sirius and Mary didn't leave much later because they had to get up early the next day.

Mary noticed that he was remarkably reticent on the way. When she asked him what was going on, he shrugged and said it was nothing. She sighed but decided to not press the matter any further. She concluded that whatever was bothering him probably wasn't that important and she was feeling too tired to worry about the capricious behaviour of her boyfriend anyway.

After they had brushed their teeth and got into bed, Mary put her head on Sirius's chest and felt so exhausted that she expected to fall asleep within minutes. He was absent-mindedly stroking her hair when he suddenly said: "James and Lily are getting married…"

Mary, who was already snoozing, opened her eyes. "Yeah, ain't it great?"

"Terrific," he said. "But I hope that well… this didn't give you any ideas, did it?"

She lifted her head slightly so she could look at him. "Ideas?"

Sirius stopped stroking her hair and let his hand rest down her neck. "Them getting married doesn't necessarily mean that we also need to get… you know?"

Mary frowned. "Because we have been going out as long as they are? Do you really think I am that shallow?"

"No… But I wanted to clarify that we aren't ready for that yet. We will… I'm sure that _if_ I'll ever get married, it will be with you, but-"

"-Sirius, I don't mind waiting for that. Besides, I'm perfectly fine the way we are now."

Sirius looked sincerely relieved before he kissed her forehead. "So do I."

Mary smiled and kissed him. "And I love you anyway, so stop worrying. That'll give you early wrinkles."

Sirius laughed before he hugged her close and fell asleep only minutes after that.

A week later, Sirius, Mary, James and Peter were walking down the street. They were off to do some grocerie shopping for the dinner they were having at James's and Lily's house. Lily and Brice stayed behind to set the table and Remus was in bed at his home. Not because it was his time of the month, but because he was having the flu and needed to rest.

Personally Mary wouldn't mind to stay in bed as well, since she was now forced to walk down the street in a rainstorm. And she had no choice but to listen to three friends reminiscing over the good old days at Hogwarts. "Remember that time in sixth year with Moony and Snivellus?" Peter asked.

James snorted. "The one time I had to interfere."

Mary shook her head in a disapproving manner. "Didn't that prank almost kill Severus?"

Peter sniggered. "It would have if Prongs didn't stop him from going in."

Sirius huffed. "The nosy git deserved it."

"He sure did," James agreed. "But you would have been expelled if Moony attacked Snivellus. And as much as I detested his slimy face, sending him to his death would be a little extreme."

They had just rounded the corner and walked towards the entrance of the store when Moody and Zabini apparated right in front of them. "Are you mad?" James said, looking indignant. "Apparating in front of all those Muggles!"

Zabini shrugged. "They didn't see a thing, besides… Desperate times call for desperate measures. We found Benjy."

"He's still alive?"

"We think so, but time is running out. That's why we need your help."

"Help doing what?" Mary asked.

"We're outnumbered," Moody grunted. "With the four of you on board, we outnumber them by two."

"One," Sirius interrupted.

"Excuse me?" Zabini frowned.

"One," Sirius repeated while patting Peter on the shoulder. "Pete isn't the best of duellers, so he's not going to be much help."

Peter flinched and Mary shot Sirius a reproachful look. "Sirius…" she said disapprovingly.

"No, it's true," Peter stammered. "He's right, I'm probably the worst dueller ever."

"Well, you'll have to do boy," Moody growled before leading them into a distant alley. "You'll follow in our trail. You know how to do that, Woods?" he asked.

"Yes," Mary replied, feeling slightly nervous because she didn't know what to expect.

Moody nodded and he and Zabini disapparated without another word. After looking at each other for a moment, James and the others followed suit and when they materialized next to Moody and Zabini, Mary noticed that they were standing in a deserted old warehouse. The shed was supported by cement pillars, but it was obvious that the place was in a bad state. Drops of water were dripping from the leaking ceiling and a chilly wind was blowing through windowless holes.

Moody ushered the others to follow him and they tiptoed through the warehouse, making as less noise as possible in the echoing space. While they were tacitly walking to a nearby corridor, Mary noticed Sirius was constantly making sure tha he was walking either next or in front of her. She assumed he did this to protect her and although part of her thought it was adorable, another part was feeling annoyed. She was equally as good at duelling as he was and he knew that.

While they walked through the corridor, Zabini explained that the Death Eaters had kept Benjy in another nearby warehouse. They stopped in front of a battered wooden door. They could hear quiet voices from inside the room, when Moody told them to keep their wands at the ready and - unwilling to wait any longer – blasted the door into a hundred pieces.

If the Death Eaters had been surprised by their invasion, they certainly recovered very quickly. In the few seconds Mary could estimate the situation, she saw that it was impossible to determine the Death Eaters's identities, because they were all wearing creepy skeleton-like masks. Before she could as much as try to spot Benjy somewhere in the room, she had to dodge a killing curse a tall and thin wizard sent at her. She spun around, warded off a second jinx and cast back a stunning curse.

While she was duelling the tall Death Eater, she noticed that Sirius wasn't fighting that far away from her and even though he was currently trying to overpower a cunning witch, she knew that he was still trying to keep an eye on her at the same time.

Mary quickly hid behind a pillar when her Death Eater fired another killing curse at her and she could hear pieces of cement coming off where the curse hit the pillar. She bent down and tried to stun the wizard again from out of her hiding place, but he was too quick for her. She switched to a different tactic by lifting a magically loose piece of cement and flinging it right at the Death Eater's face. It was a full hit; the wizard lost consciousness and dropped down on the floor. Mary quickly made thin cords of rope burst out from the end of her wand to bind him. She was about to remove his mask when another Death Eater appeared out of nowhere and hit the back of her shoulder with a well aimed Sectumsempra-curse.

She could feel part of her skin being ripped open where the jinx had hit her and yelled from the pain. Sirius, whose opponent had just disapparated, ran over to her. "Get back!" he yelled while jumping in front of her. The one second he wasn't entirely focusing on Mary's attacker, he got hit in the chest by the very same curse. He stumbled for a few seconds, but recovered quickly and got right back into duelling.

After Mary had checked the cut on her shoulder - which was bleeding badly but did not appear to be not fatal - she crawled up and joined Sirius in trying to defeat the remaining Death Eaters. As soon as Voldemort's helpers noticed they were starting to be outnumbered by the Order-members, they disapparated on the spot one by one.

"I'm going to follow them and see if I can find out their and Voldemort's hiding place," Zabini panted before disapparating on the spot.

Moody limped to Death Eater that had been tied up by Mary. He crouched down next to the unconscious body and removed his mask. "Travers," he growled before looking up at her. "Nice job, Woods. Zabini hasn't been laudatory about you for nothing."

"Thanks," Mary replied while nursing her shoulder when she suddenly felt Sirius's arms around her. "Are you okay?" he asked hoarsely.

"It's okay, just a scratch. Besides, you're hurt too," Mary replied softly and put her hand on his bleeding chest.

He shrugged. "Nothing you won't be able to heal."

Peter coughed as he appeared besides them. "Ehm Mary, would you mind healing this hole in my head? It's making me feel dizzy."

Mary smiled, placed the tip of her wand against Peter's head and used a quick healing spell which made the hole and dizziness disappear at once. "Thanks!" he grinned.

"You're welcome," she smiled before looking over at James. "You're not hurt, are you?"

He shook his head. "Nah, just a few bruises. Other than that I'm fine. Look, we need to find Benjy before the Death Eaters return with some of their friends."

James and the others joined Moody, who was already tracking the deserted warehouse. If Benjy was still alive and somehwere in this warehouse, he definitely wasn't awake because he did not reply to their calls. When they had searched for over an hour and still hadn't found him, they gathered near the entrance on the other side.

"You should go home," Moody said. "Zabini and I – when he returns - will continue to look for Benjy. You have done enough for one night."

They nodded and were about to disapparate when Sirius suddenly said: "Hang on, what's that over there?"

He was pointing to a pool of dark red water near a disordely pile of damp crates. Moody and James crouched down in front of the pool. Peter, Mary and Sirius approached the ominous looking sight more carefully and Peter hesitantly asked: "D-does this has anything to do with Benjy?"

Moody rolled his eyes (including his magical one). "You still need to learn a lot, son. If I'm not mistaken, this is _all_ that is left of Benjy."

Peter gagged and James and Sirius stared at bloody scene with open mouths, but Mary had already seen everything she needed to know. As lugubrious as it looked, the remaining body parts she managed to spot on the floor certainly used to belong to a human being. "I think you're right, Moody," she said quietly.

Moody nodded. "Alright, I need you to alert both Dumbledore and Edgar Bones or Dorcas Meadows. I need one of them to identify the body, or what's left of it. As soon as I know more, I will contact you again. Now go."

Mary and the others quickly disapparated and did as they were told before heading back to Brice and Lily. They filled them in on what happened while they were having dinner and afterwards, Brice hurried back home to take care of Remus and Sirius and Mary also went home early.

Sirius tried to heal Mary's shoulder and although he was a bit clumpsy with his spell, the wound on her shoulder healed nicely and would only leave a miniscule scar. "Not bad at all, Black," she grinned while examining her reflection in the mirror.

Sirius, who was sitting on the bed, laughed. "I'm sure you can do much better."

"I don't know. Lets find out, shall we?" she said teasingly as she crawled onto the bed and carefully pulled off his torn robes and shirt. Sirius stiffened when the fabric of his robes got pulled off his skin and he bit his lip.

Mary gasped when she realized how large and deep the cut was. She put one cool hand on his chest and got hold of her wand with the other. "This wasn't necessary."

Sirius held his breath when the tip of her wand touched the wound. "It was, I had to make sure you were alright. Ow careful there!"

"Sorry," Mary mumbled as she continued to heal his chest more gently. "I was fine, Sirius, you keep forgetting that I'm a pretty good dueller myself."

"I'm not denying you are, but even good duellers can lose."

"I wasn't losing, I had just defeated that Travers guy when I got attacked from out of nowhere."

Sirius shot her a serious look. "This isn't a game, Mare. Any duel with a Death Eater could kill you."

She glared back with glinting eyes. "Don't you think I know that!? I'm scared to death everytime you go on a mission."

"So then you can understand why I tried to protect you."

"Yeah," she replied in a small voice. "I just wished you didn't. You could have been killed tonight. If that Death Eater had used the killing curse instead of Sectumsempra…"

Sirius cupped and stroke her cheek with his left hand. "I only wanted to protect you because I love and don't want to lose you."

Mary sighed and tilted her head to the right. "I know…"

"That's why I cannot promise I won't do it again," Sirius said softly. "Because honestly, I do not plan on burying you before you're grey and old."

Despite the seriousness in his voice, Mary couldn't help but smile. "Same here… And I know you feel that way. Frankly, I'd be more worried if you didn't."

End of Update


	43. Wedding Preparations

**A/N: Next update for Everlasting. Hope you'll enjoy. More on James and Lily's wedding will follow in the next chapter. R&R! Thanks –Mara.**

**Chapter Forty-Three:**

"So are you going to do it?"

Mary smiled mysteriously at Lily before softly blowing into her cup of hot coffee and taking a careful sip. They were sitting on a stone bench near the back door of the church and were watching a small group of people standing close to a closed coffin, waiting in line to console the family members of the deceased Order member. There was a reason the coffin was closed. "Poor Caradoc," Mary thought disheartened. Caradoc Dearborn was now the third Order member in a short period of time who had vanished without a trace. And unlike Benjy Fenwick or Dorcas Meadows, his – or parts of – body was never found. The reason they knew he did die was because his robes, shoes and a special medaillon he always carried with him were sent over to Dumbledore in a shoe box.

Mary felt like she was riding an emotional rollercoaster at the moment. Extreme lows got varied with ultimate highs: as depressing as it felt having to attend yet _another_ funeral of an Order-member, the forthcoming wedding of James and Lily proved to be that happy event of the year they were all yearning for so much.

But organising a wedding in times like these was not an easy task. There are many guests at weddings and James and Lily's ceremony would be no exception. And a large amount of people, including known Order members, gathered together in a small area would be the perfect target for a Death Eaters attack. Which is why James and Lily preferred to keep their wedding as small-scale as possible. They didn't want to throw a big party and invite too many people, but they did want to follow certain wedding traditions, so they were getting married in an old chapel and would have a best man, a maid of honor and bridesmaids. And Lily had just asked Mary if she wanted to become her maid of honor.

Since Mary hadn't answered Lily's question right away, her friend seemed to be drawing the wrong conclusion. She fiddled with her prayer book and said quietly: "Mare? I know I'm asking a lot and I'll understand if you think it's too stressful to be maid of honor at this wedding, but I figured that since Sirius is James's best man, you would want to…"

Mary chuckled. "Lil, don't you know me but _at all_? Of course I want to be your maid of honor, I'm your best friend! Frankly, I'd be annoyed if you didn't-"

The last part of her sentence got lost in Lily's loud cheer and a close hug. Mary shot an apologizing look at Caradoc's relatives who were staring at them in a reproachful manner. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Lily murmured happily while she hugged Mary even closer.

"Would you look at that, Padfoot?" an amused voice suddenly spoke behind them. "If we're not careful, our girls might leave us and run off together."

James, Sirius, Remus, Peter and Brice were walking towards them. Lily let go of Mary and beamed at her fiancé. "She's doing it, James! Mary agreed to be our maid of honor."

"Really?" he grinned. "Well, that is making me feel much better."

"That's great, love," Sirius said, smiling as he sat down on the bench next to her.

Mary smiled back before looking up at James. "And why is that?"

He snorted. "Because you are just the person who's able to calm down my stressful wife-to-be when she's having another fit."

Lily smacked him with her prayer book and Mary smiled misschievously. "Oh, I don't know about that, James. Who says I won't convince her that marrying you is a huge mistake and that the two of us should be together instead?"

Everyone laughed, although Sirius and James joined in a little less loud than they would have done if the joke would be on someone else.

"Come on, guys," Remus said after checking his watch. "The memorial service is about to start."

They all sighed, got up from the bench and slowly made their to the front of the church. A lot of people were paying their last respect to the deceased as was to be expected, considering Caradoc had been a very popular wizard. He was always cracking jokes and telling them that no matter what, they should always remain positive and keep going. Which is probably why the funeral ended with the famous Monty Python's song "Always look on the bright side of life." And by doing so, Caradoc got what he wanted in the end, because despite the fact that most funeral guests had cried during the service, they walked out of the church with a small smile on their faces.

When the memorial service was over, it was early in the evening and Mary and the others decided to have dinner in a nearby tavern. Since it had been a cold day, they warmed themselves up by drinking wine and enjoying a delicious dish of roasted wild boar, steamed vegetables and fried potatoes. Meanwhile, besides talking about the wonderful deeds Caradoc had achieved in his life, they also discussed the upcoming wedding.

"You should definitely pick a good band," Peter said as he loaded his plate with potatoes for the third time that night. "Most wedding parties die a slow death due to the overkill of cheesy love songs."

Brice chuckled. "And how many weddings have you attended, Peter?"

He swallowed a mouthful potatoes and shrugged. "Quite a few. I'm from a big family."

"I agree with Wormtail," Sirius said. "How many good bands do we know?"

"Uh… The Weird Sisters?" Peter proposed.

Sirius stared at him as if he was a complete idiot. "Sure, let's ask the Weird Sisters, I'm sure they have nothing better to do than playing on a small wedding."

Brice laughed. "It could happen! But no, how about a DJ? Much easier to find and you could request all the records you want."

James frowned. "But then there won't be any wizarding music."

"Why don't we consider the DJ as an alternative and try to find another - more accessible - wizarding band in the meantime?" Lily suggested.

Everybody nodded approvingly and Lily grinned. "Great, now let's move to really interesting matters: the dresses!"

The guys groaned as one, but Mary and Brice who - like Alice - would be bridesmaids, nodded approvingly. "What did you have in mind?" Brice asked while refilling Lily's glass of wine.

"Well,-" Lily started but she got interrupted by Mary. "I have only one demand: no sofa-like bridesmaid gowns."

Her friends shot her a confused look and even the guys regained interest in the conversation, shooting her a curious look. "Sofa?" Lily asked.

Mary nodded. "I know the bride is supposed to be the most beautiful woman of the day, but that is no excuse to stuff your bridesmaids in the most ghastly dresses."

The others burst out laughing and even Mary chuckled before continuing more seriously: "You can laugh, but I've seen it happening."

James shot her an amused look. "You've "seen" it happening?"

Mary rolled her eyes. "Fine, it has happened _to_ me."

"When was that?" Remus asked.

"Two years ago when my cousin Diana got married. It was the ugliest dress I had ever seen and she and my aunt forced me and Jenna into wearing them. It was awful," she sighed dramatically.

Sirius put an arm around her shoulders. "I'm pretty sure you could even make a couch look like a designer dress."

Mary snorted. "No, I can't and for your information: in this case I looked more like a tule puffball."

The others roared with laughter and Sirius – who had just been sipping his wine – choked and got a coughing fit. Mary sniggered while she patting him gently on the back. "I should show you guys a picture of that one day." She shot Lily a look. "But I mean it Lil, no couch or puffball dresses or I'll hold that against you "as long as we both shall live"."

Lily chuckled. "If that is your only demand and means I get to bother you with every other little detail, you've got a deal."

She put out her hand and Mary reached across the table to shake it, but the distance between them was too large, so that only their fingertips touched each other briefly. Remembering that night in their Gryffindor dormitory when they agreed to be civil to James and Sirius and weren't able to shake each other's hands either, they started to giggle madly.

The guys frowned and Brice laughed. "It's just an insiders joke. I have a good hunch of what this is all about and if I'm correct, it's not something you would be interested in knowing anyway."

It took Mary and Lily another few minutes to calm down. In the meanwhile, the others ordered dessert and once they had finished eating their delicious icecreams and fruit salads, they decided it was time to go home.

When Sirius and Mary walked inside, she went straight upstairs to their bedroom and noticed there was a tiny brown owl sitting outside their window. She opened it and the owl hopped inside. When it lifted its talon, Mary quickly removed the piece of parchment he was carrying. While she was unfolding the letter, Sirius walked inside. "Who's that from?" he asked, spotting the owl on the night table.

"Jenna's," Mary replied while quickly skimming the long letter. "She's writing about Hogwarts. Oh look, apparently Slughorn told her she's saving the family honor when it comes to brewing potions…"

Sirius laughed, put his arms around her waist and peered over her shoulder to read Jenna's owl:

_Dear Mary and Sirius (and Coco),_

This is the first letter I'm writing to you from Hogwarts. I have so many things to tell you, that's probably why this letter is so long. I promise the next one will be shorter. At least I hope they will, because I'm pretty sure my hand will be aching a lot after I'm done with this note.

Anyway, first off: I love Hogwarts! The scenery is beautiful and the castle is truly amazing (except for Peeves, he creeps me out). I'm really glad I got sorted into Gryffindor. My classmates are nice, I really like Viktoria, she was born in Russia! Professor McGonagall seems fair but strict. Don't tell mum and dad, but last week me and Viktoria were strolling through the corridors at night and ran into the Professor: she gave us a five days' detention!

"Her first detention!" Sirius said, looking proud, "That's always a special moment. I can still remember the first time James and I skipped Charms and walked straight into McGonagall. I don't think I'll ever forget those flaring nostrils."

Mary shook her head but smiled. "You guys were hopeless. And somehow I know that my little sister will be every bit as misschievous as you were."

He chuckled. "I'd be delighted if she's going to be the one to find the Marauders Map, you'll never know."

Mary turned around. "You left the Map behind at Hogwarts?"

"Of course! What use is it to us now that we have left school? But not to worry, we hid it well. Only our true successors will be able to locate it."

"So where is it?"

Sirius's eyes twinkled and he grinned misschievously at her, making him look sexier than ever. "Like I'm telling you."

She shrugged. "Why not? Because you think I would tell Jenna? Never mind, I don't even want to know," she said before turning her attention back to Jenna's owl.

_Also, according to Professor Slughorn, apparently I have all the potion brewing talent you lacked. Then again, I'm probably not as good in Defense against the Dark Arts, although Professor Bell said I still have enough time to make progress (like another six years). And Hagrid is the best, although he scared me a bit at first. I mean, he's so tall! But ever since he took me, Viktoria and Bob (another Gryffindor classmate) to his cabin and showed two baby Streelers he had been breeding and told us to keep it a secret, I've decided he's an ok-guy._

Mary stared blankly at the piece of parchment for a moment. "Streelers?" she asked after a pause.

"Oh, that's a giant African snail that changes color every hour. It also deposits a trail of venom as it moves around which kills and shrivels all vegetation on its way."

Mary shook her head. "Hagrid is going to get in some serious trouble one day," she said disapprovingly. "I'm going to talk to him about this at our next Order meeting."

Sirius shrugged indifferently as he continued to read. "If you think it'll make a difference. Hang on, she's saying something about Regulus."

_Now I'm coming to the actual reason I'm writing this letter. Regulus, Sirius's brother, has been acting a bit strange. Not that it has anything to do with me. Frankly, I don't think he knows I exist. But Sirius, I thought you should know that your brother always leaves the grounds on Wednesday afternoon. I know that because that's when I'm in Care of Magical Creatures class and I can see him passing by every week. One time, I followed him and noticed that a sinister-looking man was waiting for him by the gates._

Sirius made a scornful sound. "That could also just be my father paying his favorite son a little visit."

"I don't think that Jenna is overreacting, Sirius," Mary said quietly as she pointed to the next paragraph of the letter.

_Also, he's constantly showing off this moving tattoo on his foreharm in the corridors. Most of his classmates treat him like a hero because of it, which I don't fully understand. How can just a tattoo make you a hero?_

Anyway, I don't know if it means anything, but I thought you should know. I hope you guys are doing well, are you coming home for Christmas? Oh and I heard that James and Lily are getting married, that is amazing. Please congratulate them from me! I'll write again soon and I'll try to make that one a lot shorter.

Love,  
Jenna

P.S. Like my owl? Dad bought him for me. _He's called Nemo and likes peanuts._

Mary slowly lowered the letter and shot Sirius a concerned look. He had stiffened when he had read the part on Regulus's tattoo and had been staring at the wall ever since. "Sirius," she said cautiously and put her hand on his arm. "This doesn't necessarily mean that Regulus has become… I mean, it could be just an ordinary tattoo."

Sirius scowled and roughly pushed her hand away. He started to pace up and down the bedroom while muttering: "It's too late. I could have seen it coming, I didn't do anything and-"

"Sirius…"

"-I should have, but how could he have been so foolish? He's still my brother and now he's doomed and that is my-"

"Sirius!"

He stopped talking and walking and looked up at her. "What?"

Mary sighed as she conjured a tiny bowl of crushed peanuts and water and put it down in front of Nemo, who gratefully dipped his beak into the bowl. "It's not your fault."

"But he's my brother, I somehow should have been able to prevent this from happening."

"How? This was inevitable in the end and you know that."

Sirius groaned, flopped down on the side of the bed and lowered his face in his hands. Mary walked over to the bed and crouched down in front of him. She softly stroke his cheek and whispered: "You should tell Albus about this."

Sirius closed his eyes for a moment. "What can he do about it?"

"Maybe he'll be able to convert Regulus and if not, then at least he can keep an eye out so that Regulus won't convince more classmates to join Voldemort's club."

"But there is no way back once you've joined the Death Eaters, you know that."

Mary shrugged. "We could protect him."

He shook his head. "He'll never accept our help, he's too proud."

"Even so, Albus would want to know about this."

Sirius smiled sadly and kissed the palm of her hand. "Thanks for doing this."

Mary tenderly kissed his forehead. "I'm just glad I can be here for you."

"I should go," he said as he got up quickly and pulled on his travelling cloak. "I'm going to alert Albus. Will you write back to Jenna and thank her for me?"

Mary nodded and hugged Sirius close. "Just be careful," she whispered before she watched him disapparate on the spot.

It turned out that Dumbledore didn't know about the youngest Black becoming a Death Eater yet, but he promised Sirius to talk to Regulus and keep a close eye on him from now on. This put Sirius a little at ease, but Mary noticed the issue was still bugging him more than he wanted to show. The first time in weeks he looked sincerely happy was at James and Lily's wedding.

Mary – not looking like a sofa or giant puffball, but wearing a simple lavender colored dress with a halter top – was straightening Lily's magnificent ivory wedding gown. Lily's auburn hair had been made curly by magic and put up in an elegant bun. She was currently fidgeting with her wedding bouquet and shot a nervous glance at Mary who was still busy straightening the back of her gown. "What are you doing, Mare?"

"Putting it… back… in… place... There!" Mary panted as she finally finished putting the dress perfectly straight and got back up.

"It will fall out of place again the second she moves," Alice observed with a smile on her face.

"No, it won't," Mary replied as she reached for her wand and cast a special spell that would keep the dress perfectly in place without making it look unnatural.

"Oooh, very clever," Alice said, shooting an admiring look at Mary, who shrugged modestly.

Lily's father was standing next to them, waiting until he was suposed to walk the bride down the aisle. He smiled proudly and positively beamed at his daughter. "Ready Lily?"

She smiled nervously at her father. "Yes, I'm just feeling a bit tense, that's all."

"You're not getting cold feet _now_, are you?" Mr. Evans boomed jokingly.

Lily gulped and shook her head, when the church bells suddenly resounded and the violists inside the chapel starting to play the Wedding March.

"Ha, it's time!" Brice – who was the first bridesmaid that had to walk to the altar – said. She looked back at Lily, winked and said "See you on the other side!" before walking into the chapel.

Alice was second in line. She softly pinched Lily's hand and whispered "Good luck" before she solemnly disappeared through the chapel doors.

Mary was just getting ready to enter the chapel, when Lily suddenly whispered: "I can't do this."

Mr. Evans looked gobsmacked and even Mary didn't know what else to say then: "What?"

Lily was tightly squeezing her bouquet and looked petrified. "I can't… What am I doing? I need some fresh air."

She turned around on the spot, walked out through the back door of the chapel into the snowy graveyard and disappeared from view. Mr. Evans and Mary stared at the door for a moment, until Lily's father gave her a gentle push and said: "Oh dear… Well, why don't you try and talk to her while I'll go and ask the violists to play the extended version of this music piece, shall I?"

Mary nodded and quickly hurried outside. She spotted Lily a few yards away, who was leaning against the back of a tombstone and was trying to get a grip on herself. "Lil…" Mary said softly as she approached her friend. "What is going on?"

Lily wiped her tears away and shot her a scared look. "I'm freaking out. Am I ready to get married? Marriage is a big thing, Mare. It always seemed surreal and far away, but now that it's becoming real, it just hits me. Am I doing the right thing?"

Mary frowned. "It is not for me to decide whether or not you're doing the right thing by marrying James."

Lily sniffed and conjured a tissue to blow her nose. "Right, but that's not really helping me here."

"No, I think I am," Mary said thoughtfully. "You are the one to decide whether you want this or not. Not me."

"But how will I know?"

"Listen", she said quickly, wondering how much longer the extended version of the Wedding March would last. "I think I know the solution: I'm going to ask you a few random and some big questions and you'll answer them instinctively, alright?"

Lily nodded before taking a couple of deep icy aired breaths and closing her eyes. "Go."

"Are you happy?" Mary asked.

"Yes."

"Do you think James is an obnoxious git?"

"Sometimes."

"Does he make you happy?"

"Yes."

"What do you think of Peter's tie?"

"Absolutely hideous."

"Can you imagine growing old with James?"

"Yes."

"What do you like best: Winter or Summer?"

"Winter."

"Who do you love most in the world?"

"James."

"Do you think I'm a good maid of honor?"

Lily – still keeping her eyes closed – smiled. "The best."

"Do I look hotter in this dress than Brice and Alice?"

"You know you do and stop asking questions about yourself."

Mary laughed. "Alright, alright. Do you think you'll be able to live with the worst sides of James's personality?"

"It'll be worth it."

"Do you want to marry him?"

"I do." Lily's eyes shut open. "Oh", she said.

Mary grinned at her. "So I suppose that's a yes, then."

Lily heaved a relieved sigh and smiled. It probably was her first sincere smile of the day. "Yes, it is," she said before standing up straight and shaking her shoulders back. "Thanks for doing this."

"Well you know, that is what we maid of honors are for."

Lily laughed. "Fair enough."

She smiled. "Ready?"

Her friend smiled back and held out her hand. "Together? For old times's sake, I mean."

Mary looked down as she remembered their ritual on last year's New Year's Eve and laughed. "Together," she said solemnly before accepting Lily's hand and walking back to the chapel together.

End of Update


	44. I Do

**Chapter Forty-Four:**

Sirius couldn't remember the last time James had been focusing on the same object this long. The two of them were standing at the front of the chapel, right next to a jolly priest who looked like friar Tuck and had an impressive waist line that could easily match Professor Slughorn's numerous round belly. For the last few minutes, Sirius had been closely watching James. His friend had imperturbably been staring at the large oak doors near the back of the chapel ever since those four violinists were playing the Wedding March. And if Sirius was not mistaken, they were currently replaying it for the fourth time in a row. This could only mean one thing: something wasn't right.

And it had started out so well. First Brice had walked down the aisle, at which Remus – who was sitting in the front row – had stretched his neck in a rather uncomfortable position to spot a glimpse of his girlfriend walking to the altar. Then Alice appeared, who calmly walked towards them and winked at James as she passed them. Mary was supposed to come out next, but that didn't happen. Sirius wasn't too worried at first, but hearing the violists starting over _again_, he started to wonder what this was all about.

For a moment Sirius feared that Lily and Mary might have been abducted by Death Eaters, but he disposed that thought a few seconds later when he remembered that Dumbledore had drawn a protective border around the chapel and the surrounding garden and party hall that could not be crossed by anyone uninvited, not even Voldemort himself. This comforting thought left him wondering what was going on instead.

The wedding guests had also started to whisper and mumble to each other and some of them turned back in their seats to cast curious looks at the violists and the abandoned entrance. Even James seemed to temporarily get out his trance as he carefully leaned over to Sirius and – from the corner of his mouth – mumbled: "Wha's taking 'em so'long?"

"I don't know, Prongs, but I'm sure they'll be here soon," Sirius replied. He hoped he sounded more convincing than he was feeling, but he should have known that he could not fool his best friend.

James shot him an anxious look and hissed: "Something _is_ going on, isn't it? Where are they? What if they have been attacked by Voldemort-"

"You know that's impossible, James."

"-Or _worse_: what if Lily wants to blow off the wedding?"

Sirius put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "She's not going to blow off the wedding. Now, I don't know what this is about either, but it's probably just a broken heel on one of Lily's shoes or something."

James sighed nervously, still looking unconvinced. "Are you sure…"

"Mate, whatever _is_ going on… I'm not worried, because Mary is with her and is probably getting it fixed."

Sirius had hardly finished his sentence when he turned out to be right. Mary was just walking inside. She gave a miniscule apologizing nod at the – now slightly annoyed – violinists before keeping her bouquet in front of her stomach and slowly crossing the aisle. Her long hair was being held together by tiny sticks of lavender and the bridesmaid gown was flattering her figure far more than it had done for Alice and Brice. 

Sirius was once again stunned by her beauty as she strode towards them through the aisle and when she was passing the Prewett brothers, he noticed that he wasn't the only one. Not that he was surpised to see Fabian gazing up at Mary with an amorous expression on his face. He had known Fabian had feelings for his girlfriend for months, ever since the guy volunteered to help the girls picking out flowers for the wedding so he could spend more time with Mary. Sirius had no idea if she was aware about Fabian's feelings. If so, her act to pretend she didn't have a clue deserved an award.

Mary had now reached the front of the chapel. She winked when she passed them and gave James the thumbs-up from behind her bouquet. He grinned back foolishly, clearly relieved that everything would be alright. Sirius on the other hand had noticed that the hem of Mary's gown was wet and looked a darker shade of purple than it should be. He frowned at her, but she gave him a miniscule glance that only he could read and meant he shouldn't pay any attention to it, before she lined up next to the priest and Alice.

And then, when the violinists just started playing the sixth version of the Wedding March, Lily finally walked into the chapel. She had hooked her hand through her father's arm and as she solemly strode through the aisle and was admired by the wedding guests, Sirius noticed she was looking more pretty than ever. Her auburn hair was shining, the gorgeous white gown was flattering her figure immensely and her emerald eyes were shimmering brightly: she didn't even had to put bridesmaids in ugly dresses to outshine them, she was by far the most beautiful woman in the chapel.

Sirius looked sideways at James and instantly wished he had a camera. His friend was staring at Lily as if he couldn't believe his luck. Sirius sniggered and snapped his fingers at Remus, who was in charge of the photo camera. He cocked his head over at James and Remus – who had been watching Lily until now – snorted. He raised his camera as silently as he could and quickly took a few pictures of a simply flabbergasted James.

Their friend didn't even notice. He slowly walked down to Lily who had just handed the wedding bouquet to her father, took her by the hand until they stood in front of the priest and whispered: "You look beautiful."

Lily smiled at him with twinkling eyes and whispered back: "So do you."

The priest cleared his throat and smiled at James and Lily before he stepped forward and solemnly stated: "We are gathered here on this lovely December day to witness and celebrate the union of two people in love, James Potter and Lily Evans. If there is anyone present who knows of any just cause why this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, please let him speak now or forever hold their peace."

The priest looked up and cast a thorough look around the mouse-still chapel before joking: "No one? I can imagine there must be loads of blokes dreaming of marrying this lovely young lady themselves."

The wedding guests burst out laughing. Lily blushed feverishly and James sniggered: "I cannot believe our priest is having a crush on my bride."

"No my son, but I'm just stating the obvious here", the priest said, winking at James and Lily before he continued in a louder voice: "May the groom and bride please join their left hands."

James and Lily smiled nervously at each other before joining their hands and shooting an expectant look at the priest, who said: "Do you, James Potter, solemnly declare in the presence of God and these witnesses that you take this woman, Lily Evans, as your lawfully wedded wife? Will you love, honor, cherish and keep her in sickness and health till death do you part? If so, please answer: I do."

James looked Lily straight in the eyes as he solemnly said: "I do."

The priest turned to Lily and continued: "Do you, Lily Evans, solemnly declare in the presence of God and these witnesses that you take this man, James Potter, as your lawfully wedded husband? Will you love, honor, cherish and keep him in sickness and health till death do you part? If so, please answer: I do."

Without but a shimmer of a doubt, Lily smiled and clearly answered: "I do."

The priest smiled and turned around. "Do you have the rings?"

Sirius grinned as he reached into his pocket and got out the rings. As he carefully passed them to the priest, James wiped his forehead and heaved a relieved sigh. The priest arched his eyebrows in eyebrows and James chuckled. "I was a bit scared there for a moment. Losing the rings would be just the thing happening to my best man."

Lily and the other girls, including Mary, giggled and Sirius faked a wounded look. "Me? Losing the rings? Merlin's beard, James, who do you take me for?"

James laughed and winked. "Eh… The Sirius Black I have known for seven and a half years?"

The priest – who had frowned at the words "Merlins's beard" – coughed politely before asking: "Shall we continue?"

Lily smiled apologetically. "By all means, go ahead."

"James Potter, please place the ring on the bride's left hand and by doing so, seal the eternal love that will bond your souls in this life and the next."

When James had placed the ring on Lily's hand, the priest asked her to the same thing and after she had done this, he smiled broadly. "May these rings stand as a sign to you of your desire to love and cherish each other. And now the part where we have all been waiting for-." He winked at James before continuing: "I now declare you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

James grinned before pulling Lily into a tender and loving kiss. The chapel burst out in loud cheers and wolf whistles. Sirius looked over at Mary who was watching the happy couple with twinkling eyes. As if she could feel him watching her, she looked up and shot him a buoyant look. He grinned back and winked.

It took James and Lily another moment to break apart, but when they finally did the priest boomed loudly: "Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you: Mr. and Mrs. Potter!"

Everyone applauded the newlywed couple as they turned around and crossed the aisle to leave the chapel. When Sirius stepped down in front of the altar and waited for Mary to join him for their walk to the party hall, he noticed that the hem of Lily's wedding gown was slightly moist as well. When Mary had hooked her arm through his, he asked: "Care to tell me what took you so long?"

She shook her head and said brightly: "Nope."

"So something _was_ going on?"

Mary shrugged as they started to cross the aisle. "Nothing worth mentioning."

Sirius noticed that Fabian was gazing at Mary again when they passed his row and rolled his eyes. "Whatever, you can tell me about it later."

Mary, either oblivious to Fabian's gazing or ignoring it, gave a tinkling laugh. "Sirius, will you knock if off! There's nothing to tell."

They had arrived at the party hall and Mary let go of his arm, but Sirius immediately got hold of her waist instead. He cupped her face with both hands and attempted to look as stern as possible when he gave her a piercing look. "What were you doing outside?"

Mary, not the least intiminated by his intense stare, looked him straight into the eyes. "Getting some fresh air before I had to enter that crowded chapel."

"Hu-hum… And what about Lily?"

She was taken aback for only a fraction of a second, but Sirius knew her well enough to know he had her where he wanted. "Eh… Same thing," she said, avoiding his gaze.

Sirius smiled and hugged her close to kiss her on the forehead. "Well, whatever it was, you fixed it. And it's noble of you to be determined in keeping it a secret."

Mary laughed and kissed his nose. "I should have known you were on to me. Oh hello, Albus."

A merry Dumbledore was walking up to them with a a tray of snacks in his hands. "Good afternoon. Lovely day, lovely wedding service, wasn't it?"

Sirius and Mary nodded, grinning, and Dumbledore offered them some snacks. "I especially recommened these salmon-and-cream cheese puff paste snacks. I keep thinking I should find a way to learn the secret recepy. Seriously, you should try one, they are delicious."

"Well, I _am_ starving," Sirius laughed before putting one of the snacks into his mouth. "Hmmm, thas' preddy goo'," he told Dumbledore with a full mouth.

Dumbledore chuckled and offered Mary a snack as well. She laughed and declined politely. "However, I do know for a fact that Mrs. Evans made these cheese snacks."

"Really now?" Dumbledore said, looking around and spotting Mrs. Evans who was talking to Frank and Alice Longbottom. "Ah well then, if you'll excuse me for a moment…" He winked before heading straight towards Lily's mother.

Sirius and Mary assisted James and Lily in directing the guests to their assigned seats before they sat down themselves. Whereas everyone else took place at one of the many round tables in the room, they shared the long table on the main stage with the happy couple, James and Lily's parents, Remus and Brice, Frank and Alice and Peter.

After they had dinner and talked animatedly for some time, it was time for Sirius to give his best man's speech. He reached for the piece of crumbled parchment he had been carrying with him throughout the day, walked to the front of the stage and used _Sonorus_ on himself before Remus solemnly tapped the ede of his champagne glass. The hall gradually turned silent.

Sirius coughed and unfolded the parchment with a flourish. He shot a teasing look at James and Lily before saying: "James and dearest Lily, or should I say… Mr. and Mrs. Potter? Who could have imagined to ever use these words in one sentence? Not me. How can you possibly recap the seven and a half years James and Lily have known each other in one speech? Seven years of James unsuccesfully trying to woo Lily and her despising him more with every attempt? Honestly, it would take me at least three hours to cover the entire prehistory of the special relationship between these two people and frankly… I would be boring you to death. So I'm not going to do that!"

Sirius shot another misschievous look at James who was just looking positively relieved at hearing him say he would skip countless embarassing attempts to win Lily over, before chuckling. "Okay, maybe just one example."

James groaned and tried to hide behind his menu card while Lily laughed and put a hand on his arm. Sirius grinned and continued: "Who could forget that catastrophic Valentine's day in fourth year when James covered the Common Room floor with a path of rose petals that led to the back of the room where he was waiting for Lily with a single rose in his hands, ready to declare his eternal love for her. Sadly, dear Lily entered the room while reading a Potions book. As a result, she didn't notice the rose petals on time and, instead of walking over them, slipped, sprained her ankle and had to be taken to Madam Pomfrey instead."

The hall howled with laughter. Lily was giggling madly and a fiercely blushing James was burying his face in his hands. Sirius waited until most of the crowd had calmed down before saying: "However, despite this – and countless other – disastrous attempts to conquer darling Lily's heart, James did succeed in the end. Granted, he got some (well needed) guidance from Mary when he asked Lily out like a true gentleman-"

Lily reached over the table and shot a quasi annoyed look at Mary and hissed: "I _knew_ it! I knew you were behind that!"

"-But James got what he wanted in the end: he and Lily fell in love and have been inseparable ever since. This is why I'm not surprised that they are the first of our group to take the big step and have become husband and wife. And just look at them: any fool can see they have a rock solid relationship and that they belong together. If there ever was a couple who could be called soulmates, I'd put my money on them. Which is why I'd like to ask all of you to raise your glass with me and drink on the undoubtedly everlasting love of James and Lily Potter!"

"Hear, hear!" the entire hall boomed before raising their glass on the newlyweds.

"And I'm not done yet," Sirius said after he had downed his champagne. "May I please invite some other people onto the stage as well: Mary, Remus, Brice, Peter, Frank, Alice, Moody, Hagrid and Zabini."

James and Lily looked genuinely surprised when their other friends got up from their seats and joined Sirius on the stage. He waited until Moody, Hagrid and Zabini – who had quickly conjured a band of self-playing instruments with a flick of his wand - had joined them as well before saying: "Now, few people know that we, the Order, are – by some – referred to as the Merlin Theatrical Company. Even fewer people know that we have never actually performed a single song. So, by singing this song for you we hope to have settled our debt and – are you listening, Albus? (Dumbledore raised his glass with twinkling eyes) - never will have to perform in an actual play or musical."

Sirius turned back to James and Lily and – more seriously - said: "Of course, this song is mostly directed at you: may your marriage be a series of happy events, but remember that even in difficult times that may lie ahead, you guys won't be on your own. In fact, with this song, your friends would like to say that "We all stand together"."

Zabini flicked his wand and the unmanned instruments started to play a catchy and familiar tune on their own, resulting in several admiring looks from Lily's Muggle relatives. They sang the famous Paul McCartney-song together and, near the end, Moody even made some Dr. Filibuster's Fabulous Wet-Start No-Heat Fireworks go off in several corners of the room at the same time.

When they were singing the final chorus, they all hooked their arms together and conjured a special banner made out of fire flies that said "Just Married" and made it float right above James and Lily's heads before ending the song with a loud: _"We all. Stand. Together!"_

Everyone burst out in applause and loud cheers. Dumbledore was one of the first people to get to his feet and applauded them with a broad smile on his face, before the other guests followed his example.

Sirius started looking for Mary on the crowded stage. He spotted her with Lily, who was hugging her friend with shimmering tears in her eyes. He walked over to them and Lily turned around to hug him instead. "Thank you so much, Sirius. You did a wonderful job with that speech," she said in an emotional voice.

Sirius patted her on the back while smiling at Mary over her shoulder. "Yeah yeah I know, I'm the best "best man" a bride and groom could wish for."

Mary snorted and shook her head when Sirius heard a modest cough behind them. He turned back and looked straight into the face of James. "You know," he said, grinning. "For a brief moment in your speech I found myself wishing that I would have chosen Remus as best man instead, but now I know I did the right thing. I'm proud of you, mate," he said, patting Sirius on the shoulder.

Sirius laughed as he and James made their way over to the table to get more champagne. "Thanks and I needed to mention _that_ part you're referring to. It would be a crime to best man-hood to _not_ include it."

James was chuckling when his eyes fell on Mary, who was talking animatedly to Lily and probably explaining why she had helped him to ask Lily out in a civil way. "Fair enough, mate," he said, shooting Sirius a significant look. "That is if I get to do the same thing to you one day. Soon," he added matter-of-factly.

Sirius looked from James to Mary. How in the world did his friend know that ever since today, the thought of marrying Mary didn't seem that frightening to him anymore? Hence, that throughout the day, he had actually pictured him and Mary as the groom and bride instead of James and Lily more than once? He looked at his friend and knew it was simply impossible to hide his true feelings from him. Sirius knew that his twinkling eyes would giving him away. He grinned back foolishly and mumbled absent-mindedly: "Yeah, one day soon. Yeah, maybe…"

"Wonderful!" James called and he clapped him on the back.

"So now what?" Sirius asked James while refilling his best friend's glass of champagne.

"Now?" James grinned before dragging him along to Lily and Mary and stating loudly: "Now, we party!"

End of Update

**A/N: the song is of course Paul McCartney's We All Stand Together. That song got released in 1982, but I really wanted to use it for this, because it somewhat relates to all the (bad) things that lie ahead. Secret-Keeping and all that jazz.. ;) More on Lily and James's wedding in the next chapter! -Mara**


	45. What A Wonderful World

**Chapter Forty-Five:**

"Would you look at them?"

Brice was standing next to Remus with her arm around his waist, who was leaning against the bar while refilling her glass of champagne. They were watching James and Lily who had been gliding over the dancefloor together for the last hour, oblivious to anything in the world but each other. It even looked like they were unable to hear the band, which - as they and Frank had just unanimously decided – was only a good thing, because the Twisted Wands was without a doubt the worst band they had ever seen.

The geeky band members were wearing hideous glittering suits that would have even embarrassed Boney M and their playlist came down to cheesy lovesongs (with hilarious in-depth lyrics such as "Baby, without you I'm like a Christmas tree without a top") which got alternated with weird up-tempo music that seemed to miss those essential tunes to make them sound like a catchy tune. But unlike Brice and the guys who preferred hanging out by the bar, the awful music didn't stop the other guests to enjoy themselves on the dancefloor.

Dumbledore for example was walzing with Mrs. Potter (sr.), Zabini was just taking Petunia – Lily's sulky looking sister – by the hand to the dancefloor and Alice was still attempting to learn Peter how to properly dance the foxtrot.

Sirius's eyes on the other hand were focused on Fabian and Mary who were dancing together in front of the stage. Or dancing... Since the band was currently playing another one of their horrible up-tempo songs, Fabian was swirling Mary around so feverishly that at one point, she would have tumbled over if it weren't for Fabian who caught her competently and put her back on her feet.

Sirius wasn't the only one who noticed. When Remus had finished kissing Brice and softly whispering something in her ear (she giggled), he said: "Oh yes, our newlyweds are definitely more in love than anyone else present, but-" he cocked his head over at the stage "-It looks like Mary is also having a good time."

Remus looked at Sirius. "You not worried, mate?"

Sirius sipped his butterbeer and glowered at Fabian and Mary for a moment before shrugging and muttering something unintelligible. Gideon shot an uneasy look at Fabian before saying: "I apologize, Sirius. I wish my brother would realize that Mary is not only out of bounds because of you, but that she's also out of his league. I tried to warn him about this yesterday."

Sirius arched an eyebrow at Gideon. "Warned him for what?"

"For getting on your nerves by getting too close to Mary."

Sirius snorted in a haughty manner. "You don't honestly think that I'm worried about that, do you Gideon?"

He shot him a curious look. "Well, aren't you?"

"No," Sirius repied confidently. "I'd be lying if I said that Fabian's amorous stares don't annoy me, but I'm pretty sure Mary won't run off with him anytime soon."

Hagrid downed his bucketsized bowl of mead before he unexpectedly dropped a large hand on Sirius's shoulder, which made his knees bend in an unnatural and uncomfortable position (due to Hagrid's weight). "Tha's the spirit, Sirius. Never doubt how much tha girl loves yeh. Any fool could see tha'."

Sirius smiled at Hagrid and Brice chuckled. "May I add that Mary probably isn't even aware of the fact that Fabian fancies her?"

Everyone looked from Fabian and Mary – who was now laughing at something funny Fabian said as they were slowdancing to another sentimental lovesong – at Brice. After a staggering moment of silence, Frank hesitantly asked: "How could she _not_ have noticed that?"

"Because Mary always has trouble telling the difference between guys who just like her and guys who are crushing on her," Brice said. "My guess is that according to Mary, Fabian is just being incredibly nice."

"How can you be so sure about that?" Gideon asked.

She shrugged. "She's never mentioned Fabian to me and Lily. I've known Mary for a long time and if she had detected but a hint of his feelings, she would certainly have come to us for advice."

Marlene frowned while using her wand to uncork another bottle of wine. "I find that hard to believe, sorry."

Brice – who didn't always get along with Marlene - rolled her eyes but before she have could said anything else, Gideon said: "So what are you going to do about this, Sirius?"

Sirius laughed. "Nothing. As long as he keeps his hands of Mary, that is," he added more seriously. "If he dares to lay but one finger on her, he's dead meat. You can tell him that," he concluded while raising his butterbeer at Gideon before sipping it.

Gideon did not smile, but before Sirius could clarify that he was only joking, Marlene took him by the arm and pulled him towards the dancefloor. "Time we'll give those two a run for their money, don't you think?"

Sirius grinned. He pulled Marlene into a close embrace and they started to dance to what – thankfully - would be the final song of the band for that evening. Sirius was a great dancer. He chuckled to himself as he thought that his excellent skill in dancing might be the one good thing about growing up in the Black family. His mother forced him and Regulus to take dance lessons and although he had loathed it at the time, right now he was really glad that he (contrary to Peter) wasn't making a fool of himself.

While Sirius was swaying Marlene around over the dancefloor, he realized how much he liked this woman. With her intelligence, blonde hair and bright grey eyes, she reminded him of a young Narcissa. When he was young and he and Cissy were still good friends, the two of them used to sneak around Grimmauld Place together, annoying Bella by cursing her goblet or exchanging her wand with a fake one whenever they got the chance. 

Marlene looked like she would have acted the same way and although they were now fighting against Bellatrix and other Death Eaters instead of just pranking them, Sirius felt that the two of them were a good team. Plus she knew how to make him laugh.

Right now for example, as they were getting closer and closer to Fabian and Mary, Marlene winked at him before breaking the dancing couple up by jumping right in the middle. She grinned at Mary and wrapped an arm around Fabian's shoulder. "You don't mind if I borrow him for a sec, do you?"

Mary looked at Sirius and shook her head. "Not at all," she smiled before walking over to Sirius, who pulled her into a close embrace in one movement. Right when they were about to start dancing, the band ended their final song of the night.

Most of the wedding guests applauded the departing musicians politely, but Fabian was cheering and simply roaring with laughter as he leaned over to Mary and high-fived her before booming: "We did it! Our tactic finally pulled off!"

Mary grinned and winked at him and – when a DJ put on the Beatles record "Hey Jude" – put her arms around Sirius's neck. He shot her a curious look. "What was that all about?"

She laughed. "Didn't you notice our ridiculous dancing routine?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows. "There was a reason for doing that?"

"Of course there was!" Mary laughed as she playfully hit him around the head. "We figured that, if we were dancing excessively like that enough, it would scare off the band at some point. And guess what? It worked!"

"Right… Well, congratulations on your victory. How does that make you feel?"

"Exhausted to tell you the truth. My feet are killing me!" she pouted as she looked at him with twinkling eyes.

Sirius grinned back. "You know you can always lean on me."

"Oh thank goodness!" she faked a relieved sigh before relaxing her head on his shoulder.

Sirius pulled her even closer to his body. He smelled a combination of the lavender sticks in Mary's hair and her flowerly perfume and he breathed in deeply. His hand was gently stroking the small of her back when he heard her whisper: "I love you."

Sirius smiled and, after (he couldn't help himself) shooting a possessive look at Fabian who was watching them closely from across the room, he concluded that he had nothing to fear from Fabians's crush. He planted several little kisses on Mary's shoulder before whispering back: "I love you too."

Mary raised her head slightly to shoot him a curious look. "Say, what dance is this?"

"Er… No dance in particular. Why?"

"Oh. Well, it's just that apparently you know all the dances in the world, so I thought…"

Sirius laughed. "It seems we're falling into the James and Lily-trap."

Mary looked at James and Lily who were dancing next to them, still living in their own little world as they swirled around the dancefloor and smiled. "Aren't they cute?"

Sirius nodded and merely smiled, but when they had slowly danced towards the newlyweds and were standing next to them, James suddenly opened one eye and muttered: "I heard that, Mary. And I would prefer not to be labeled as "cute"."

Mary laughed and rolled her eyes. "What would you like to be called, then?"

He laughed. "How about legendary? Superior. Or perhaps extravagant?"

Lily snorted. "Suddenly "cute" doesn't sound so bad to me anymore."

James shrugged. "In that case, let's just stick to Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Anyway, don't you think we would make some more pictures before we leave on our honeymoon?"

They all agreed to that and left the dancefloor. Lily walked off to look for Remus and his camera. She returned only minutes later with the camera in her hand, smiling mischievously. James – noticing this - grinned and reached for her hand. "What have you been up to?"

"Me? Nothing," she replied, smiling innocently. "But Peter on the other hand…"

James exchanged a surprised look with Sirius. "What about Wormtail?"

"He's just hooked up with Lucy McDowell. Mare, you know who that is, right?"

Mary frowned thoughtfully. "Isn't that your parents girl next door who's good friends with Petunia?"

Lily nodded with twinkling eyes. "I think they make a rather sweet couple. Of course Tuney is having a fit because her best friend is snogging a wizard." She rolled her eyes. "Oh well, she'll come around eventually."

"Wishful thinking if you ask me," James said, chuckling as he took the camera from Lily and started taking some pictures.

Lily posed with Mary and Sirius and after Sirus had made several shots from the newlywed couple, Lily said: "We should get a picture of the four of us. You know: groom, bride, best man and maid of honor."

Mary got hold of the camera and said: "Alright, but let me take one of the three of you first."

Sirius – remembering Mary's skill when it comes to handling a camera – shot a worried glance at James before saying cautiously: "Mare… You _do_ remember what happened the last time you touched a camera like that, right?"

"Yes," Mary replied cheerfully as she lifted the camera. "Why?"

"Because there aren't just holiday images on this one, they're _wedding_ pictures. And it would be rather disastrous if you deleted them by accident."

Mary looked amused and slightly annoyed at the same time as she lowered the camera and looked at him. "You don't think I can take this picture," she stated.

"I'm not saying that," Sirius said quickly. "I'm just emphasizing how awful it would be if we lost all those amazing images."

Mary arched an eyebrow at him. "Honestly, I can do this. Geez, have a little faith in me."

Lily decided to intervene. "It's fine, Mare, go ahead. But I'd really like you to be in this picture as well."

"Oh, we'll find someone to make a picture of the four of us after this."

When Mary was getting ready to take their picture, Sirius couldn't help but saying teasingly: "Remember, it's the large button on the right."

James and Lily laughed, but Mary huffed and rolled her eyes. "Git," she muttered darkly before deciding to ignore him and said: "Okay, now don't forget to smile. Say cheeeeeeeese!"

She could have waisted the trouble of saying that. James was standing on the left as he waved up at her, beaming, his untidy black hair standing up in all directions. Lily was standing in the middle, arm in arm with James and smiling broadly, looking alight with happiness. And Sirius was standing on the right, looking handsome as ever and full of laughter while he raised his glass at her.

_Click_.

"There," Mary said, shooting a significant look at Sirius as she handed the camera back to James. "See, and nothing got deleted. I told you I could do this!"

Sirius pulled her towards him and kissed the tip of her nose. "I was only joking. But you cannot blame me for remembering how you deleted the film of our entire trip."

Mary had no choice but to agree with him on that. James leaned over to them and said: "Remus is going to make some more pictures of all of us. Are you guys coming?"

After they had posed with James and Lily for another while, Sirius and Mary joined the rest of the wedding guests who were getting ready to send the "extravagant" newlyweds on their honeymoon to Egypt. Lily was ascending the stairs of a platform situated right next to the chapel. While she was calling every unmarried or engaged girl to gather around in front of the platform, Sirius walked over to James – who was watching Lily with that dazed smile on his face - and said: "I've almost completed my job as best man and am about to resign, but I still need to ensure a couple of things."

His friend shot him a surprised look. "And what may those things inquire?"

Sirius reached for a piece of the crumbled parchment in his pocket that contained the vows he, Remus and Peter had written down a few nights ago. He cleared his throat in a serious manner and stated: "James Potter a.k.a Prongs, in the name of the Marauders, do you solemnly swear to take good care of Lily, a.k.a Mrs. Potter, on your honeymoon to Egypt?"

James smiled and solemnly put a hand across his heart. "I will."

Grinning, Sirius continued: "In the name of the Marauders, do you solemnly swear that – even though that you're a married man – will not change and remain the Prongs we all know is still hiding inside of you?"

"Of course I will," James said with twinkling eyes.

"If that's the case, do you solemnly swear to transform one night at full moon to circle the pyramids of Gizeh at least three times and think of those Marauders you left behind?"

James grinned mischievously: "Naturally."

Sirius nodded and solemnly patted his friend's shoulder. "Excellent, but most importantly: do you solemnly declare to have the time of your life?"

"I will."

"Good." Sirius smiled at James and put the parchment back in his pocket. "On a more serious note," he said quietly. "I heard that Voldemort also has followers in Egypt, so you better watch your backs carefully while you're there."

James nodded grimly. "I know. Albus has already warned us about that. He suspects that Voldemort has raised a special unit nearby Cairo to keep an eye on the wizard community in the Egyptian capital. But not to worry, we'll be even more careful in that area, I promise."

"Good to know," Sirius told James before walking back to the other Order members, who were watching the girls standing in front of the platform, waiting for Lily to throw the wedding bouquet. Sirius looked for Mary in the crowd and he spotted her on the far left. To his surprise, she didn't seem that keen on catching Lily's bouquet. On the contrary, unlike the other girls who were watching the bride closely while keeping their arms high in the air, her arms were crossed and she remained at the back of the group.

Nevertheless, when Lily had turned back and threw the bouquet over her shoulder, it zoomed right at Mary where it lingered in the air for a moment, waiting for her to snatch it. She realized how suspicious this had to look to the other girls soon enough and had no choice but to grab hold of the bouquet. The other girls of the group looked disappointed as they retreated, but Mary wasn't looking that happy either when she walked towards Lily and hugged her, but the other wedding guests cheered and applauded them loudly.

Remus, who was standing next to Sirius, nudged him and grinned. "You know what that means, don't you?"

Sirius laughed rolled his eyes until he heard a slightly drunk Fabian booming loudly: "I wouldn't mind marrying that beautiful girl one bit!"

Sirius looked over at Fabian, who was standing next to his brother. Gideon had put his hface in his hands and was now shooting him an apologetic look, but Sirius merely shook his head and shrugged. "Well, don't we all, Fabian?" he said in an indifferent tone.

Of course Fabian opened his mouth to give him a cheeky reply, but Gideon intervened right in time and told his brother to calm down. Ending this premature discussion which could very well have ended in a real fight was probably a good thing, because James and Lily were about to leave. They hugged all their wedding guests before they got ready to apparate. James thanked everyone for attending their wedding and making it a memorable day before he intertwined his fingers with Lily's. "We're off to find the sun. And some other things. Ta-ta", he said jokingly while winking at Sirius, Remus and Peter before the two of them apparated on the spot.

The wedding guests were pretty much ready to head home as well. After Sirius had thanked James and Lily's parents for organizing the wedding, he flopped down on a distant stone wall while he waited for Mary. When he finally saw her slowly walking up to him, he noticed that she was still holding Lily's bouquet in her hands and looked very uncomfortable when she said: "I eh… I can explain this."

She pointed down to the bouquet and Sirius said: "Explain what?"

"The bouquet. I didn't even want to catch it, but she… Lily... She charmed it, Sirius."

He shot her an amused look. "Yes, I gathered that as much."

Mary blushed and looked down at the thin layer of snow on the ground. "I'm so sorry. I even asked her to cast the bouquet in the other direction, but she wouldn't listen and now…"

Sirius reached for her hand. "You think this is making me feel awkward?"

Mary looked at him. "Well, me catching that bouquet. It might raise certain expectations and I don't want to force you into anything."

Sirius squeezed her hand gently and smiled. "Well, it's still up to me to ask you and since I'm immune to feeling any pressure whatsoever, you shouldn't expect a proposal from me anytime soon."

That was a downright lie. A part of Sirius wanted to propose to Mary rather sooner than later, but there was also something lingering inside of him that wasn't sure if he ever wanted to get married _at all_. And he was weary of making such an important promise to Mary if he might not be able to keep it. He knew he needed time to figure out what he really wanted. To his immense relief, and although she had no idea about what was going on in his head, Mary seemed to agree. She smiled and gently stroke part of his hair behind his ear. "Good to know," she said calmly, looking relieved, before she kissed him passionately.

When they broke apart several minutes later, they noticed that practically all the guests had already left. Sirius got up from the wall and took Mary by the hand as they sauntered towards the front of the chapel where Sirius's motorbike was waiting for them. He quickly conjured a self-warming leather motorjack out of thin air and handed it over to her, who was trembling in her thin bridesmaid gown.

"Thanks," she said, shivering while putting on the jack, and got onto the back of the motorbike. "Please just promise me one thing," she whispered into his ear as she put the bouquet down between his legs and tightly wrapped her arms around his waist.

"What?" Sirius said as he started the motor.

"If we ever _do_ get married, please let it be some time in the Summer."

Sirius laughed. "You've got a deal," he said as he lifted Mary's hand and kissed it tenderly before speeding up his bike to make it take off in the clear and starry, but icecold sky.

End of Update

**A/N: Hmmm, I suppose the big question now is: will he or will he not…? Haha, you'll have to see and find out for yourself I suppose, because I'm not telling you guys anything :P -Mara**


	46. A Sinister Prediction

**Chapter Forty-Six**

It was that moment. You know, those few seconds before you wake up after a good night's sleep but are not really awake yet. The morning after James and Lily's wedding, Mary was fully enjoying the fact that she was able to sleep late. It was the first time in weeks she and Sirius could lie-in, so she was planning to not get up before eleven, at the very least.

The only problem was that today was another icecold, but clear day. There was not a single cloud in the sky to block out the sun, which was currently shining so brightly that its rays got right through the curtains and warmed Mary's face.

Mary, who was still snoozing, responded by turning to her other side and wrap her arms around Sirius's waist, who turned out not to be there. This stroke her sleepy mind as a bit odd. As far as she knew, Sirius – like her - didn't have any appointments today besides the Order meeting they were going to attend tonight. Mary racked her brain (which was always a bit slow in the morning) for a moment, trying to remember if he did have another appointment today after all. Suddenly, Mary became aware of hearing something breathing right next to her that certainly wasn't Sirius. A little apprehensive to discover the source of the sound, she opened one eye… And stared right into the grey eyes of a rather large and scruffy black dog, which was only inches away from her face and holding a copy of the Daily Prophet in his mouth.

Mary screamed and jolted up in a reflex at the same time, painfullly bumping her head against the head of the bed. She swore loudly. "Sirius!" she yelled, looking really annoyed as she nursed the back of her head and groaned. She had just established a rapidly growing hump on the back her head.

Sirius, who had quickly transformed back to himself, dropped the Prophet to the floor and said: "I'm so sorry, Mare. Are you hurt?"

"No, the egg-sized lump on the back of my head is giving a rather tingling sensation. Of course not, you idiot!" Mary sneered before she sat up straight and avoided moving her head as much as possible.

The corners of Sirius's mouth twitched, but he managed to stay serious as he attempted to touch her face. "Why don't you let me take a look?"

Mary hit his hand away from her face and hissed: "You'll only make it worse!"

"Sweetie," he persisted in that soft sexy voice she was never able to resist. "It's impossible to heal that swelling yourself. I'll cure it for you, and you can talk me through the process."

Mary – still nursing her head - frowned while glaring at Sirius for a moment before she shrugged and muttered: "Fine."

Sirius reached for his wand and crawled onto the bed next to Mary. He sat down behind her, pulled away her long hair, ignored her continuing grumbling and carefully placed the tip of his wand against the lump. "Okay, so now what?"

Mary had crossed her arms and answered in a capricious voice: "Use a standard shrinking spell, but don't forget to include the fact that you're diminishing a swelling. The correct incantation is _minuoffa_. Say it aloud if you will, before you'll make my entire head disappear."

Sirius burst out laughing. "You're a funny one, do you know that?"

She huffed. "I'm not joking. Pierce from the Healer Program told us about this man in St. Mungo's who shrank his entire face whereas he had been aiming for just his nose."

Sirius laughed even harder. "What an idiot."

Despite her headache, Mary couldn't help but smile either. "Yeah, and I've seen the photographs. Let me tell you: that was not a pretty sight."

"I can imagine that. Now, let's get on with this healing spell. _Minuofaah_, right?"

"_Minuoffá_, Sirius," Mary said urgently. "Be sure to pronounce the incantation the right way or it will go terribly wrong."

Sirius nodded and muttered: "_Minuoffa_."

Mary instantly knew that Sirius had carried out the spell correctly, because the lump started to feel hot before it tingled; she could feel the swelling (and with that, the pain) slowly drain away until it was completely gone.

"Did it work?" he asked anxiously.

For a minute Mary considered to stay angry for another few minutes, but when she turned back and met his concerned gaze, she knew she could never do such a thing. "Yeah, I'm fine. Good job," she smiled.

"Thanks," Sirius grinned before pulling her into a close embrace and overwhelming the "re-lumped" spot of her head with kisses. "I really am sorry. It was never my intention to scare you so badly," he whispered in her ear.

"Why were you sitting right in front of me, then? And why as a dog?"

"Because I once again realized what a lucky man I am to have such a beautiful girlfriend. Even my dog form is able to see that," Sirius replied while he continued stroking her cheek with his hand.

Mary's cheeks turned crimson. "Sirius… You're making me blush," she mumbled as she made an attempt to get of his embrace.

Sirius merely laughed and responded by pulling her even closer to him. "It's the truth," he said teasingly after kissing the tip of her nose.

Mary smiled and replied by pulling him into a passionate kiss until she remembered something and pulled back. "But why did you transform into a dog?"

"I do that quite often in the mornings, actually," he replied. "As a dog, my thoughts are less complex. That way I can temporarily avoid dealing with troubled thoughts and just run around being wild and free."

Mary arched an eyebrow. "And when did Pensieves get out of fashion?"

"Ever since I became an Animagus. Besides, Pensieves aren't going to bring you the morning newspaper, or-" he casually flicked his wand and a tray with freshly baked bread, juice and sandwich fillings appeared on her night table, "-breakfast in bed," he grinned cheekily.

"Oh, you think you're being so clever, don't you?" Mary said as she sneakily got hold of her pillow.

Sirius smirked. "Rhetorical question. And what exactly are you planning on doing with that pillow you have behind your back?"

"This!" Mary cried and flung the pillow right in his face.

Sirius was fast enough to grab a pillow of his own and soon they were engaged in an old-fashioned pillow fight. Both of them were eager to win the battle and after a while the pillow-stuffing was flying around the room. Sirius finally managed to throw Mary's pillow off the bed and jumped right on top of her, determined to go for the kill: tickling until she would be begging for mercy.

In Mary's case, this wouldn't take very long, because she couldn't stand being tickled. She giggled madly while she was (unsuccessfully) struggling to get out of Sirius's grip. "S-Si-Siii-rr-iii-usss," she panted with difficulty. "Stop! Sto-hooop!"

"As soon as you say it," he grinned. He had given up on tickling her sides and was now titillating the sole of her left foot.

"Ne-ver!" Mary cried defiantly with twinkling eyes.

"Fine," Sirius shrugged and started to "attack" her right foot.

"Arrrrgh!" She couldn't take the torture any longer. "Ok-ay. Okaaaaaaaay!" she cried desperately. "Please oh almighty Sirius Black, please have mercy on my humble soul!"

Sirius dropped her foot at once. "Very well," he grinned before getting off her and laying down on his back.

Mary shot him a look. His head was resting on his arms and he was wearing that arrogant smirk she had hated for years. "Get that smirk off your face, Black," she muttered darkly.

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "You won't even let me enjoy my well-earned victory?"

"Pfffft, you just got lucky and-"

Within the blink of an eye, Sirius was sitting on top again and pinned her arms at her sides. "You want another go?" he said, shooting her a challenging look.

Mary was about to give him a very cheeky reply when she spotted James's owl, sitting in front of the bedroom window. "Look, it's Rufus!"

Sirius followed her gaze and let her go at once. He crawled off the bed and opened the window so that the owl could hop inside. He quickly removed the small letter from Rufus's talon and unfolded it.

While he was reading the owl's content, Mary walked over and peered down so she could also read the letter which James, she noticed with interest, had written on papyrus instead of parchment.

_Dear Sirius and Mary,_

How's the weather over there? Over here: sunny. Even Lily is developing a tan which – with her pale skin – is quite remarkable and she claims it has never happened before. Mary, you should know that because of this discovery, Lily is now concidering staying in Egypt for good.

Anyway, quick recap: honeymoon is amazing, I start loving Lil more every day and I'm realizing that I'm the luckiest bloke in the world to have married this priceless girl. Although priceless… This nice Egyptian merchant has already offered me 45 camels in exchange for Lily. Good thing I'm not interested in that sort of thing. But who knows? Maybe it'll come in handy in the future…

However, this is not why I'm writing you guys. You should inform Albus that Voldemort is becoming even more powerful in Egypt than we already thought. Long story short: he tracked us down when we were visiting a tomb near Cairo, attacked us and we only just managed to make it out alive.

Needless to say this was a terrifying experience, but there is also good news. I'm not sure if good is the correct word for what I'm about to say, but the thing is: we discovered that Voldemort's Egyptian Death Eaters are working on developing a weapon. Apparently, it's some kind of artifact which will grant him an irrefrangible protection.

That's all Lily and I have found out at his point. We'll try to discover more about this as long as we're here, but would you please show this letter to Albus asap? We reckon it's crucial the Order learns more about this.

_Take care._

-James (and Lily)

Mary clapped her hand over her mouth when she read the paragraph about James and Lily being attacked by Voldemort. "They were attacked by Voldemort himself, I can hardly believe it…"

Sirius nodded, looking paler than usual. "What kind of valuable object could be located in an Egyptian tomb... An object which would cause Voldemort to hunt them down personally?"

Mary bit her lip. "What can be found in a tomb? Jewels? A treasure? Gold?"

Sirius shook his head. "I don't think Voldemort cares about being wealthy. An irrefrangible protection..." he muttered to himself. "I wonder what that could mean."

"Do you want to go to Albus right now?"

"No," he said. "Tonight will be soon enough, but we'd better go to the Headquarters early, so we can inform him about James and Lily's discovery without somebody intervening."

Mary nodded. "So what will you do now?"

"Write back," Sirius said and grabbed a quill from Mary's night stand.

While Sirius was writing a reply to James and Lily, Mary took a quick shower to wash her hair. The hot water managed to warm up and relax her tense body a bit, but it failed to fill up her heart and mind. She found it difficult to get her head around the fact that Voldemort had _personally_ attacked her best friends. Even though they had been in the Order for quite a while and had battled against his Death Eaters on numerous occassions, none of them had actually met the Dark Lord in person. Until now.

That night, Sirius and Mary were the first Order-members to arrive at Headquarters. When they walked into the room, Dumbledore – who was sitting at the long table and currently studying a map – looked up and smiled: "Ah Sirius and Mary, good to see you. Do allow me to say that I'm noticing you're reporting to duty slightly earlier than usual. And fromthe looks your faces, I understand that this is not a coincidence."

Mary exchanged a surprised glance with Sirius and she could see he was thinking the same thing. How Dumbledore was always able to tell what they were thinking or how they were feeling was beyond her. Mary remembered Remus telling her once that he suspected Dumbledore was an excellent Legillimens and this guess suddenly didn't seemed that odd to her anymore.

They sat down facing Dumbledore and right when they were about to fill him in about what happened to James and Lily in Egypt, the door opened and a remarkably cheerful Hagrid walked inside. Mary softly squeezed Sirius's hand before she walked over to Hagrid and asked him to help her preparing coffee, tea and biscuits for the meeting so that Sirius could quietly inform a grave-looking Dumbledore about Voldemort's secret and his new mysterious weapon.

Over the hour, the other Order members trickled in one by one. Sirius and Dumbledore were still quitely discussing the letter at the back of the table, so Mary decided to gather the others at the sitting area near the fireplace. It didn't look like the meeting was about to start anytime soon, so Fabian – who was sitting next to Mary – amused them by reading some of the members' hands.

He had just finished predicting Hagrid's future, which – according to Fabian – looked quite promising and although Hagrid would have to wait at least another fifteen years, he eventually could expect some kind of unexpected career boost. Hagrid chuckled. "Tha's probably me becoming a shepherd or something like tha'. I've always wanted teh become someone who looks after' magical creatures."

Fabian smiled. "I'm pretty sure animals are in good hands with you, Hagrid. Now who's next?" He looked sideways at Mary. "How about you?"

Mary hesitated, and Brice snorted loudly. "Mary doesn't believe in hand reading."

Fabian looked genuinely surprised. "You don't?"

"Er," Mary said, feeling slightly uncomfortable because she didn't want to insult him. "Why did you take a Divination NEWT when you knew you wanted to become an Auror?" she asked, trying to win time.

He shrugged. "Because I was already taking every possible NEWT and started to feel bored. I get the idea you're being sceptical about Divination, but I can assure you: hand reading is one of the most accurate elements of this subject. Why don't you give me a chance? I promise I won't be offended if you don't believe a word I'm saying."

After considering this for a moment, Mary shrugged and held out her left hand to Fabian. When he took it and asked if this was the hand she used for writing and she nodded, Brice leaned in a little closer. "Oh, this should be interesting."

Fabian studied Mary's hand thoroughly before saying: "Okay, let's see: you're intelligent, caring, courageous, talented and remarkably down-to-earth-"

"No kidding," Brice snorted and the others laughed.

"-You're not always sure about what you want. You are very stubborn and have a bad temper. You… Hmmm, this is very interesting."

"What is?" Mary asked, still feeling unconvinced about the hand reading since anyone who knew her but a little bit could have summed up those characteristics.

Fabian shot her a concerned look. "Do you see this vertical line in the middle of the palm of your hand? That's your life line. And…", he hesitated. "Well, it's quite short, you see…"

Mary frowned. "So what does that mean? That I'm going to die at a young age?"

Edgar Bones, who was sitting on the other side of Fabian, downed his elf-wine before shrugging and saying indifferently: "Don't we all in these times?"

But Fabian frowned as he studied Mary's hand even more closely. "Not necessarily."

"Oh right," Brice muttered. "And we're back at merely guessing again. Professor Clearwater would be proud of you, Fabian."

Fabian smiled mysteriously, but did not respond. Instead he said: "Mary, what is so fascinating about your hand, is that your life line - or fate - has two possiblities. Look at this junction," he said and Mary bent a little closer to see what he was talking about. "After that junction, which I assume will be some kind of life-threatening situation, only one line remains. It's possible that's your life line, or perhaps it's just an irrelevant side line."

Mary stared at him. "So this means I'm not going to die soon yet?"

Fabian shrugged. "Maybe you will, maybe you won't. I couldn't tell you. Your future is still hidden in your hand."

Mary, who had started to feel rather scared instead of indifferent, was about to ask him if it's possible to change a person's fate when Sirius called them to join him and Dumbledore, so that they could commence the meeting. The others were already walking over to the table and Mary was also getting up, when Fabian quickly turned her hand upside down and took one last close look. "Ah," he said matter-of-factly.

Mary narrowed her eyes slightly. "What do you mean: "ah"?"

"If your life line does continue, you'll become a mother of three children."

He winked at her before getting up and walking to the table. Mary followed, feeling a bit dazed. Although she had never really believed crystal-gazing of fortune-telling, she would be lying if she said that Fabian's session wasn't concerning her. After all: it was war and she was a member of the resistance. No matter how you looked at it, her life (and that of her friends) was at risk. While Mary was pondering over her possible endangered future, she hardly absorbed Dumbledore's explanation and the following discussion about James and Lily's letter and Voldemort's secret weapon. Instead, she was studying her hand closely and wondered about what terrible events could possibly lie ahead.

Her mind got only drawn back to the present when Dumbledore was about to close the meeting but announced that he wanted to inform them about one last thing. Mary looked up and saw that his bright blue eyes weren't twinkling as usual, but looked rather dull. When she shot him a closer look, she suddenly realized that he was also looking tired and troubled, perhaps even discouraged.

Despite everything else that was going on inside her head at the moment, this realization frightened Mary beyond anything else. If James's and Lily's discovery about Voldemort's weapon resulted in making Dumbledore look as discouraged as he did at this moment, that was truly alarming. Or was there something else troubling his mind?

Mary's disqueting presumption got confirmed when Dumbledore removed his glasses, folded his hands and shot a concerned look at each and every one of them. "There is no easy way of saying this," he said calmly. "Of course I could have kept this burdened information from you until I would have found out more. Perhaps that would be the wisest thing to do, but I have no experience in dealing with this, nor having ever expected to to deal with it. Which is why I have decided to be straighforward about this… development, after all."

Dumbledore stopped talking for a moment and Mary could almost touch the tension in the room. She looked around the table and everyone was wearing the same mixed expression of curiosity, concern and plain fear. A fear that turned out to be justified when Dumbledore said: "Lately I – and not only me - have been realizing that the Order is no longer the secure haven of loyal members that it used to be. Simply because… I have every reason to believe there is a spy in our midst."

End of Update 

**A/N: Minor cliffie, sorry about that… I'll try to update as soon as possible, but I'm terribly busy at the moment so we'll see. Hopefully on Saturday or Sunday… -Mara**


	47. Regulus's Choice

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who left a review. I love reading them. I suppose a nice thing to do would be to dedicate this chapter to you, so I'm doing that just now. Speaking of this update: things are getting more and more out of hand. But I hope you'll all still like to read it. Enjoy, and don't forget to leave a comment when you drop by. Thanks! –Mara.**

**Chapter Forty-Seven:**

Dumbledore's statement was followed by the most staggering silence Mary had ever experienced. For a long time, no one seemed to know how to respond to the possibility that there might be a spy among them; someone who, despite his or her promise to stay loyal to the Order, had crossed over to the dark side and betrayed them all by joining Voldemort's Death Eaters.

Mary looked around the table and could only see perplexed faces. Hagrid looked crestfallen, Frank was looking indignant, Brice was nervously biting her fingernails, Remus looked very concerned and Peter merely confused. Mary glanced sideways at Sirius and noticed he looked simply infuriated, as if he was was planning to expose and punish the traitor himself if he got the chance. "Well, at least it's _not_ him," Mary thought to herself after studiying Sirius's expression more closely. She knew him well and there was no way he could look _this_ angry if he had something to do with it.

Frank was the first one to break the silence. Everyone looked up from being absorbed in their own thoughts when he spoke in a bemused voice: "But… How is that possible?"

"We're not one hundred percent sure yet," Moody said after exchanging a significant look with Zabini, which confirmed Mary's suspicion that they had been the ones Dumbledore referred to when he said "and not just me".

"But considering what happened to James and Lily in Egypt even though we're the only ones who knew of their honeymoon… That's highly suspicious," Zabini said. "And I reckon this spy also had something to do with the kidnapping and murder of Dorcas-"

"Sean," Dumbledore interrupted calmly but with a certain note of disapproval in his quiet voice. "Let's not jump to conclusions just yet."

Zabini shot Dumbledore an incredulous look. "It's highly possible that nobody but us knew about her alternative accommodation and-"

"But it's not _im_possible she also informed someone else of her wherabouts," Dumbledore repeated, still calmly but now in a slightly more pressing tone.

Zabini shrugged moodily and muttered something unintelligible while Fabian shot him, Moody and Dumbledore a concerned look and said: "So you have got absolutely _no_ clue who's behind all this?"

"I'm afraid not," Dumbledore admitted before he put the tops of his figertips against each other and shot each and every one of them a close look. "I see some of you have closed their minds. Quite understandable. It is only a wise tool to use Occlumency in public meetings in times like these. And with those who weren't closing their minds, I did not come across any alarming revelations."

Mary heaved a relieved sigh at which Sirius shot her an examining look, but she didn't care. She had never been good at Occlumency and knowing that Dumbledore had read her mind and didn't suspect she was betraying him, was a comforting thought. This left her wondering who _had_ been using Occlumency to prevent Dumbledore from reading their minds.

After another moment of silence, Remus hesitantly cleared his throat. "Let's assume for a moment that there _is_ a spy among us. How are we going to deal with this?"

"Yeah," Sirius chimed in. "How can we ever go on another mission when we know that Voldemort will always be one step ahead of us?"

Moody acciod the bottle of elf-wine to refill his glass before he said: "By turning this discovery to our advantage."

There was another bemused silence and this time it was Mary who broke it. "Not to be a total pessimist here, but how can we possibly turn this to our advantage?"

Moody shot her a look, although his magical eye was still scanning other people in the room. "Voldemort thinks he's ahead of us, but he doesn't know that we found out about his spy."

To Mary's relief, she wasn't the only one who wasn't following Moody exactly. Marlene took a sip of Firewhiskey before she said: "And you don't think the spy is will inform him about our discovery soon enough?"

"Of course he will," Moody replied matter-of-factly. "Which is why I intend to closely follow every member I consider capable of betraying the Order."

Zabini had started to massage his temples. "I still think we should let everyone take a vow to remain loyal to the Order. An Unbreakable one, to be more specific."

Some members nodded approvingly and even Mary thought this was not a bad idea, but Dumbedore dismissed Zabini's suggestion by simply saying: "No."

Fabian supported Zabini's plan. "But why not? An Unbreakable Vow would rule out the possibility for Order members to betray everybody else."

"Because," Dumbledore said, "Everyone in the Order is free to join and leave as they please. This is no organization that thrives on coercion or fear and certainly does not include a permanent mark to guarantee and constantly remind a member of his or her loyalty."

"Would this be the time and place to discuss this? What if the traitor is present tonight?" Brice asked.

"And what happens when we _do_ expose the traitor?" Remus asked. "Will he or she get punished?"

"That's another example of turning the possibility of a spy to our advantage," Moody said. "If we can convince the traitor to become a double spy in Voldemort's gang, we don't just become square: we become right ahead of him."

"How can you be so sure that this spy would _want_ to do that?" Sirius asked with an incredulous look on his face.

Dumbledore smiled. "You'd be surprised how many people, when given the chance, are willing to redeem themselves."

"And in the meantime?" Edgar Bones asked. "How are we going to deal with this when we're discussing new facts about the Death Eaters?

"We'll talk about discovered artefacts or missing members like we always did. With the only exception that some information might be incorrect."

"Hang on," Frank said, frowning. "Are you saying that we'll be discussing matters that might actually won't happen at all?"

Dumbledore nodded and Moody said: "Indeed. With some luck, sooner or later Voldemort gets a little too much false information from his Order-spy and will want to do something about that. And I'm sure you can all figure out what that means."

The rest of the Order remained silent. Some people nodded, others were merely frowning. Mary knew what they all were thinking. If Voldemort decided to punish someone who did not perform up to his standards, chances were they wouldn't live to tell the tale. Despite the gloomy atmosphere in the room, Dumbledore suddenly smiled. "I understand that this must be feeling like an insurmountable setback, but let's not stress too much over matters that may or may not occur in the future. Since there are no other pressing subjects to discuss at this point, I suggest we call it a night and all head home."

No one objected. Mary and Sirius didn't talk much on their way home. Mary did repeatedly cast worried looks at her hand. She hadn't forgotten what Fabian had told her when he'd been reading her hand. A short lifeline, a life-threatening situation… Would that mean she was going to die in an attack? And could this Order-spy have something to do with that?

When they had gotten home and put their robes on the hallstand, Sirius walked straight to the kitchen. "Do you want something to drink?"

Mary, who had sat down on the edge of the couch and was once again studying the lines in her palm, answered: "Yeah, alright."

"How about some wine?" he called from the kichen.

"Eh… Sure," she answered absent-mindedly.

She was still staring at her hand when Sirius returned with two glasses of white elf-wine. After he had put them down on the coffee table, he asked: "Does your hand hurt?"

Mary looked up and shook her head. "No."

He frowned. "It's just that you have been staring at it all evening…"

Mary sighed. "Fabian read my hand before the meeting and… It's not looking good, Sirius. My lifeline is extremely short and there's some kind of crucial junction in it that predicts a life-threatening situation and… Why are you looking at me like that?"

Sirius was shaking his head as he stared at her. "Would you listen to yourself? You sound like Clearwater on a Speeding Solution! When exactly did you stop referring to handreading as a woolly load of crap?"

She shrugged. "Fabian mentioned certain characteristics that matched my personality perfectly."

Sirius made a scornful sound. "Oh, let me guess? Clever, courageous, proud and remarkably stubborn?"

"Well yes, but-"

"Mary, anyone who's ever met you would name those character traits. You don't exactly need to read your hand to know you're headstrong."

"I know that. But still, what he said about my lifeline..."

Sirius put down his wine and reached for her hand. "Let me have a look."

Mary wasn't sure if this was such a good idea, but she let him take her hand anyway. She watched him study it for a while, until he finally said: "Right and your lifeline is supposed to be…"

"The vertical line in the middle and… What are you doing?"

Sirius had softly kissed her palm and was now gently caressing the centre of her hand. "Now that's what I call a strong lifeline." He kissed her palm again. "Which without a doubt means you shall lead a long and happy life-"

"Sirius…" Mary said with a slight smile creeping over her face.

"With an extremely good-looking and unmatched intelligent man by your side-"

"Sirius!" Mary – now smiling broadly – cried. "You're not taking this seriously."

He looked at her with twinkling eyes. "I most certainly am! I _am_ very good-looking and intelligent, if I say so myself."

Mary rolled her eyes. "I wish I could contradict that, but yes: you are. Anyway, Fabian said-"

Sirius scowled. "Fabian probably had the night of his life simply because he was able to touch and study your palm closely. I can imagine his reading abilities might have been a bit off because of his feelings for you."

"Huh?" Mary said, taken aback. Fabian was in love with her? Somehow she did not see that one coming.

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "You're not telling me you didn't know, are you?"

Mary took several large gulps of wine before she slowly shook her head, feeling a bit dazed. "I had no idea. I knew he liked me, that's not it, but… I thought we were just friends."

Sirius threw his head back and burst out laughing and Mary shot him an insecure look. "Was it something I did to make him think I like him in that way as well?"

Sirius needed another minute to calm down. He was still sniggering when he wiped the corners of his eyes. "Brice knows you a lot better than I thought."

"What do you mean?"

"She already said you were thinking that Fabian was just being nice."

"I was! Wait, does everyone know about this but me?" Mary asked, looking flustered, which made Sirius burst out laughing again. She suddenly put her face in her hands. "Oh, so _that's_ what Lily meant!"

Sirius gently pulled her onto his lap and stroke a lock of hair from her face. "What?"

Mary looked down at him. "When she charmed the wedding bouquet and I went over to her to say I was not amused, she said 'If all goes well, this should put an end to that poor lad's misery'. And all the time I thought she was referring to you."

"Impossible," Sirius said. "Dating you hasn't exactly been torture, more like heaven."

Mary blushed fiercely, but she felt a happy glow inside when Sirius kissed her. When they broke apart, Mary was grinning. "By the way, you're probably right about the handreading. I've never believed that and I shouldn't start now because of some ill omens. As if living in a world with Voldemort isn't foreshadowing enough. But do you know what else Fabian saw in my hand?"

"That one day you'll become Minister of Magic?" Sirius suggested indifferently.

"Oh, that would be cool but no," Mary said, stroking his cheek. "If I survive that future perilous event, I'll become a mother of three children."

"Hmmm," Sirius said thoughtfully, clearly enjoying her touch. "You know, I've always wanted three children too."

"Actually, I used to dream of having two kids. A girl and a boy."

"Well, maybe you'll have twins and then we end up raising three kids after all."

Mary smiled. "As long as they are healthy." She suddenly started to laugh. "I cannot believe I'm discussing having children with you."

Sirius shot her a mischievous look. "I'm not talking about having children _now_, am I? We've only just reached adulthood ourselves. Besides, I like the practicing too much."

Mary giggled before becoming serious again. "But raising children in times like these? Would that be good or bad considering they might have to grow up in the middle of a war?"

Sirius pulled her closer and started to fondle her back. "I don't know."

Mary put her head on his shoulder and sighed. "And what about the Order? What is going to happen to us now that there's a spy in our midst?"

"I don't know that either, love," Sirius answered softly. "I just hope we'll be able to expose that betrayer sooner or later. I have to say I did like the idea of Unbreakable Vows…"

"I think we should trust Dumbledore," Mary objected quietly. "He must know what he is doing and have a good reason for handling the situation the way he does."

Sirius shrugged. "I suppose so." He yawned widely. "Shall we go to bed?"

Mary nodded and got up. She quickly brought the empty wineglasses to the kitchen and when she returned to the living room, Sirius was waiting for her in front of the stairs. He grinned before he reached for her hand and said in a perfect imitation of the woolly accent of Professor Clearwater: "You might want to consult the signs in your hand before you head up those stairs, my dear. I have Seen you have about a forty percent chance of falling and hurting your precious little face."

"Ha ha, very funny," Mary said, looking quasi-annoyed before she pulled her hand away and flicked her hair over her shoulders as she started to ascend the stairs.

"But dear, aren't you afraid of tripping or eh… the stairs breaking down under your weight?" Sirius called after her in a teasing voice.

Mary – already halfway up the stairs – turned around and stared right into his twinkling eyes. "I think I'll take my chances", she said before turning back and heading up the stairs to their bedroom without looking back.

Over the next few months, nothing extraordinary happened. When James and Lily returned from Egypt, they informed the rest of the Order that they hadn't succeeded in finding out a lot more about Voldemort's secret weapon. But what they did know for sure was that the weapon was not a person or magical creature, but some kind of object. Lily said they did overhear Egyptian Death Eaters repeatedly mentioning a certain "Cup of Assiduity".

Meanwhile, the Order-spy had clearly taken Moody's threat to track everyone who acted suspicious to heart and decided to lay low for the moment. No Order members got abducted or murdered and they were sent on few missions, although Dumbledore, Moody and Zabini kept their word when they let Sirius, James, Remus, Peter, Fabian and Frank post in front of a distant hangar throughout a rainy night, supposedly to guard a collection of secret cards, which in fact turned out to be maps of the London Underground.

Lily got accepted by the London Advanced Potions Academy. When she would graduate from this prestigious education two years later, she could either become a well-skilled Potions teacher or start developing drafts herself. James, Sirius and Mary had started their second year at the Auror and Healer Program. Later that year they would become trainees: Sirius and James would start working at the Auror Office and Mary would go to St. Mungo's. She had chosen to specialise in Spell Damage and was hoping to get the trainee post in that department, so she could work under Gregory Pierce. But she wasn't the only one who desired that spot. One of her classmates – whom Mary liked a lot -, the Chinese girl Ching-Lu, told her she was prepared to do about anything to get it.

But they weren't there just yet. On a blazing hot Summer's day, Mary was walking around on Covent Garden – a Muggle area in London with numerous authentic shops and market stalls - to buy several herbs she could use in drafts and ointments. She had already bought some nettle abstract and hop and was just closely studying a small basket of rose hip when she felt a tingling on the nape of her neck. Like… As if she was being watched. As imperceptible as possible, Mary got hold of her wand in her pocket before wheeling round.

Due to the fact that she was now staring straight into the sun, Mary's first impression was that Sirius was leaning against the pole of an opposite stall. She blinked in confusion and only when she squinted her eyes, she finally realized that it wasn't in fact Sirius who was watching her, but his brother Regulus. In fact, he was beckoning her. Remembering his current status of Death Eater, Mary shot him a wary look. Then, after she got a firmer grip on her wand, she approached Regulus. "What are you do-"

Regulus had gotten hold of Mary's arm and was dragging her along the crowd until they were walking into a less crowded alley with a few shops and pubs, where some people were having a drink in an outdoor café, enjoying an icecold pint in the pleasant coolness of the shadow.

Regulus paid no attention to them and pinned Mary against a wall opposite the pub. When he was standing in front of her and anxiously glanced over his shoulder before he looked straight at her, Mary once again noticed how much he looked like Sirius. He may be slightly less handsome, but had the same haughty features, black shiny hair and intense grey eyes; with the exception that Regulus's eyes were cold instead of warm and loving. Even though he looked quite intiminating, Mary tried to hide her insecurity by shooting him a daring look and saying in a loud voice: "_Now_ will you tell me what this is all about?"

"Shhhhh!" Regulus hissed. "Keep your voice down, you stupid cow!"

She scowled. "And why is that? Because some of your masked friends might be lurking around?"

Regulus glanced over his shoulder again. "If we're lucky, they're not."

Mary, taken aback by Regulus responding seriously to her last remark, frowned. "What do you mean?"

Now it was his time to scowl. "You really have no idea what you're talking about, do you?"

"I would if you would tell me what this is about," Mary hissed through gritted teeth.

Regulus sighed and for a second, Mary could spot a sense of plain fear in his eyes instead of the usual loathing when he shot her a look. "I need to talk to Sirius."

"Alright…" she replied hesitantly. "But why are you contacting me instead of him?"

"Because that would have been too obvious. It's urgent, I don't have much time…"

"What is it about?"

Regulus looked at her once more and - with his face only inches away from hers - to the other people in the alley it must look like he was about to kiss her, if it weren't for the clear revulsion in his eyes that everyone else was unable to see, but Mary could. "I'd rather discuss that with him," he said after a tense pause.

Mary nodded slowly. "Fine."

Regulus shot a final anxious look over his shoulder before turning back. "When will he be home tonight?"

"Eh around eight, I suppose, but-"

"Eight it is then," Regulus nodded curtly and without waiting for her reply, he turned around and stalked off in the other direction. Mary watched him disappear in the crowded Covent Garden-crowd within a few seconds and sighed. She had no idea if she had done the right thing by agreeing to let a Death Eater come to their house. On the other hand, this was no mere Death Eater: this was Sirius's brother and she knew that Sirius would do almost anything to help his brother out of this mess. And if she had just interpreted Regulus's nervous behaviour correctly, he had finally realized that he needed Sirius's help as well.

- End of Update -


	48. Brothers In Arms

A/N: I assume you've all read Deathly Hallows, so you know what Regulus did and how he died

**A/N: I assume you've all read Deathly Hallows, so you know what Regulus did and how he died. Now, since I wrote this part of the story prior to the release of the final book, I handled this part slightly different. Although I **_**did**_** it right that he was R.A.B! **

**Anyway, the reason I chose **_**not**_** to rewrite this section is because what happens to Regulus in this story it's crucial for the rest of Everlasting. Sounds mysterious, huh? Just read on and find out!**

**Chapter Forty-Eight**

"What time did you say he was coming?"

That must have been the fifteenth time Sirius was asking Mary that question. He had come home from school at 7PM and Mary had immediately told him about her little rendez-vous with Regulus that afternoon. Ever since, Sirius had been pacing in and out of the kitchen where she was preparing their dinner. When he walked back in and asked the same question again, Mary sighed, stopped cutting the sweet peppers that were supposed to go in her pasta and lowered her wand to turn around and shoot him a look. "Eight o'clock, Sirius," she replied with a note of annoyance in her voice. "Why are you asking me that over and over again?"

Sirius looked nervous while he walked over to her and leaned back against the kitchen sink. "I'm sorry," he said, running a hand through his hair. "I keep asking because I need to know _exactly_ when he's going to show up. I'm not giving him the opportunity to surprise us," he added grimly.

Mary had gone back to magically cutting the vegetables. She shrugged. "Regulus joined the Death Eaters right before he graduated from Hogwarts, Sirius. I don't think you'll need to fear his magical skills. And don't forget he's coming on his own."

Sirius watched her cut a tomato in half as he drummed his fingers on the sink before muttering: "Well, let's hope so."

Mary frowned as she got hold of some basil and started to chop the herb. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Sirius shot her an examining look. "You _are_ aware that you invited a Death Eater into our home?"

"Meaning…"

"Are you saying you haven't even considered that Regulus might not be alone when he shows up, but that he could be joined by a few Death Eaters buddies or, Godric forbid, Voldemort himself?"

Mary put down her wand and shot him a concerned look. "This Auror Program is really getting to you. You're starting to sound more and more like Zabini and Moody, spotting conspiracies and life-threatening situations everywhere."

"Well, shouldn't I?" Sirius started angrily.

"No!" Mary cried, feeling frustrated. "Regulus is your _brother_, Sirius. And despite the disastrous status of your relationship, he's coming over to _you_ to ask for help. Don't you think being a little less sceptical would be appropriate?"

"Well Woods, I never thought I'd see the day to hear _you_ defending my honor," a sarcastic voice spoke from the entrance of the kitchen. Mary and Sirius wheeled around at the same time. It was Regulus, who glowered at them as he was leaning against the kitchen doorpost.

Sirius responded extremely fast by snatching Mary's wand and pointing it straight at his brother's chest. When Regulus noticed this, he smiled wryly and continued in an arrogant, almost bored voice: "I had the possibility to kill you both just a moment ago, but I didn't. And you don't have to worry about those "buddies" you're referring to either. I shook them off about five blocks ago."

Sirius narrowed his eyes at him. "You were followed by Death Eaters on your way here?"

Regulus nodded gravely. "They've been trying to do me in for days."

"And why is that?"

He scowled. "Isn't that obvious?"

Sirius glared at Regulus for a moment, still aiming Mary's wand at his brother's chest. "Why are you here?"

Regulus shot a look at Mary. "Can we discuss that in the living room? I rather don't want _her_ to hear what I have to say."

Mary was feeling insulted, but it was nothing compared to Sirius whose furious glare was positively alarming. Silver sparks shot out of the end of the wand, which was still pointed at Regulus. "How dare you insult Mary like that!" Sirius growled through gritted teeth. "There are no secrets between us. Whatever it is you want from me, you'll be saying it in front of her."

Mary felt a strong feeling of love and pride when she saw how Sirius was defending her honor. It filled her up completely and resulted in making her swallow back a snappy response. Instead, she managed to say in a calm voice: "Actually, I do think it's better if you discuss things in the living room, so I can get back to cooking. But Regulus, don't be so naïve to think I won't hear what this is about the second you're gone," she added coolly.

Mary stepped forward and gently took her wand from Sirius's hand. She gave him a gentle push and whispered: "Go on, it's okay."

"Are you sure?" he mouthed back while stepping back slowly.

When she nodded, he gave her a final look before turning around to take Regulus to the living room. Mary watched the two of them leaving the kitchen and noticed that Regulus was having trouble walking. He was holding his hand to his side as he limped forward and seemed to be in a lot of pain. Mary shrugged. As long as he didn't mention anything about it…

She tried to focus on cooking the pasta and even though she really didn't want to eavesdrop, she couldn't help overhearing scraps of the conversation. She could hear Regulus saying something about "the Dark Lord…", "…succeeds, he'll become more dangerous than ever", "invisible to the naked eye" and "invincible."

Mary frowned and tried to imagine what it would mean if Voldemort became invincible. A disaster was the first word coming to mind. She sighed and got back to preparing the pasta. After she put the spaghetti into the pan and was stirring the tomato sauce, she turned up the volume on the radio, but could still hear Regulus talking about "hiding place" and "object".

Mary poured herself a glass of wine. There wasn't much cooking left to do. When she heard Sirius talking about "deadly consequences", she decided she could no longer suppress her curiosity. Mary turned off the hob and – realizing she hadn't offered Regulus a drink – quickly grabbed the bottle of wine and two glasses and made her way to the living room.

Sirius and Regulus looked up and stopped talking when Mary entered the room. "Would you like something to drink?" Mary asked Regulus, forcing herself to smile at him politely.

He shrugged. "I don't drink wine. Do you have Firewhiskey?"

"Yes, we do," she replied and looked at Sirius, who looked rather pale and very concerned. "You too?" she asked.

He merely nodded, so Mary took the wine back to the kitchen. When she returned with the Firewhiskey, she noticed there was blood dripping from Regulus's chair. Without really thinking about it, Mary put down the Firewhiskey and crouched down besides Regulus to pull up his robes and said: "You're hurt."

Sirius shot a curious look at the spot where the blood was dripping to the floor. When Mary carefully lifted Regulus's torn robes and observed the five inches wide gash on his stomach, he was momentarily too shocked to respond. But he recovered quickly by hitting her hand away a second later. "Don't touch me, Mudblood!"

"Alright, that's it!" Sirius roared as he got up straight. "You. Out of my house. NOW!"

He pulled Regulus out of his chair by the collar of his robes and his grey eyes were glinting with fury. "Ever call her that again in my presence and I _swear_ I will make your life a living hell!"

Mary felt grateful that Sirius was standing up for her the way he did. She was also annoyed with Regulus, but that brief moment she got to examine his cut had been enough to conclude that it was a serious injury. And – without really knowing why - when Sirius was roughly dragging his struggling brother to the stairs, she hurried after them and cried: "Sirius, don't!"

He stopped and shot her an incredulous look. "What?"

Mary shot a look at Regulus. "He's critically injured."

Sirius looked at his brother, who seemed to have become even paler than before with drops of sweat dripping down his face. "Alright," Sirius sighed before carefully guiding Regulus back to the living room. "But one more insult like that and you're out. Got it?" he snapped threatingly when he pushed his brother back down on the chair.

Regulus glared back at Sirius for a moment before shrugging and muttering: "Fine. If you really think _she's_ capable of helping me."

Sirius opened his mouth, looking simply murderous, but Mary pushed him aside and pulled up Regulus's robes, looking determined. "Let's see, shall we?"

One additional look at the badly bleeding gash was all she needed. "It's a two-way _Sectumsempra_-curse. I can heal that, but… It's not going to be painless."

"You're not going to heal me," Regulus groaned and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I'll just go to St. Mungo's-"

"-You'll never make it there alive," Mary interrupted. "You've already lost a great amount of blood and that gash is not going to stop bleeding anytime soon."

"But…" Regulus started.

"Face it, Regulus," Mary continued in a cool voice. "You're either going to be healed by the touch of a Muggle-born witch or you'll die. Your choice."

Regulus stared at her for a moment, looking shocked and scared, and he nodded slowly. "Go ahead. Please," he added with a glance on the still furious-looking Sirius, whose fists were clenched at his side.

Mary nodded and hurried to the kitchen to get her wand. When she had crouched down in front of Regulus and started to Heal the gash on his stomach, Sirius had started to pace around the room. "But you said that Voldemort-," he said, ignoring Regulus's shudder, "-had to put something into that locket you destroyed to give him an invincible status. What exactly are you referring to?"

"I'm not sure," Regulus groaned. "All I know is that it's something personal. Ouch!" he snapped.

"Just stay still," Mary replied shortly. She hadn't been as careful with healing Regulus's wound as she would have acted should the victim be Sirius, Lily or one of the others.

Sirius had downed his Firewhiskey and was refilling his glass when he said: "But you destroyed it?"

Regulus gave a snort of mirthless laughter. "Not all of them, but I got rid of the locket, yes."

"Merlin's Beard, there are more of those things? What did you do with the locket?"

"That doesn't really matter, does it? It's gone, that's for sure."

"Where is it now?"

"I hid it well. The Dark Lord will never find it, trust me on that one."

"Done," Mary said and lowered her wand. She had healed the wound on Regulus's stomach nicely and it hadn't even left a scar. Regulus examined his belly for a moment. With a tremendous effort, he stammered: "Thanks."

Mary couldn't bring herself to say "you're welcome", so she nodded curtly and reached for her wine before sitting down on the couch.

"Does Voldemort know you've abandoned him?" Sirius asked, still pacing up and down the room.

"I haven't responded to his calls for days," Regulus said sarcastically. "I'm pretty sure he's got the message by now."

Mary shot him a concerned look. "What are you going to do now?"

He shrugged. "Trying to stay alive, I suppose."

"You've got no place to hide?" she asked, feeling an unexpected stab of pity.

Regulus shook his head. Mary was about to offer him to stay at their place for the night, when Sirius seemed to read her mind and cut her off. "You're not staying here, Regulus. I won't endanger our lives by letting you spend the night at our house. Why don't you go to your parents? I'm sure they will welcome their favourite son back with open arms."

Mary was still trying to get used to Sirius addressing his own mother and father as if they were distant acquaintances when he continued in a milder voice: "But I promise that, if you really want to go through with this, the Order will protect you. Just come to the St. Paul's Cathedral tomorrow at noon and Albus will be there waiting for you. And…" he hesitated. "So will I."

Regulus bit his lip and Mary saw he was looking terrified, realizing he was about to face another dangerous night in the London streets alone, constantly hiding from his former colleagues who were out to finish him off on their master's orders. "Are you really coming too?" Regulus asked with an insecure note of hope in his voice.

Sirius smiled and pulled Regulus up again, gently this time. "Of course," he said warmly. "I'm still your big bro. Who's going to look after you if I don't?"

For a second, Regulus looked like he wanted to hug Sirius but he changed his mind in the end and shook his hand instead. "Thanks. I'll see you tomorrow then," he said as he walked to the middle of the room.

"St. Paul's Cathedral at noon," Sirius repeated, nodding.

Regulus nodded and, after shooting another look at Sirius and Mary, disapparated with a crack.

"What are we going to do now?" Mary asked after a moment of silence.

"Telling Dumbledore," Sirius replied when he had downed his second glass of Firewhiskey. "You coming along?"

"But… What about dinner?"

"Oh that," Sirius said and looked at the kitchen. "I wasn't feeling that hungry anyway."

"Neither am I," Mary sighed before walking to the kitchen to clear up the cooking mess with one wave of her wand.

They apparated in front of the Hogwarts gates two hours later. It was the first night of the new term and they reckoned that the opening feast would be over by now.

While they were crossing the grounds, Sirius was remarkably quiet and other than "Isn't it weird to be back here?" and "That's the spot where James and I once made Snivellus eating a pile of dirt", he didn't say much. Mary realized he was this silent because he was worried about Regulus, but she also knew he'd rather be cursed before he would admit that.

When they were standing in front of the heavy doors, Mary knocked. And – assuming that no one possibly could have heard that – repeated the movement until she could hear someone opening the doors from the inside.

Sirius and Mary looked at each other and wondered who would be letting them in at this hour. Would it be Madam Pomfrey? McGonagall? Or even Dumbledore himself? Mary groaned inwardly when she noticed that the person who had opened the doors was no other than the caretaker Argus Filch. "Black and Woods," he muttered. "I thought I'd seen the last of you, but apparently I was praising the day before it ended. Why are you here?"

Mary shot a look at Sirius to see if he wanted to take the lead in the conversation but he remained silent, so she cleared her throat. "We need to speak to Al… Professor Dumbledore, sir. It's urgent," she added when she noticed that Mrs. Norris was mewing disapprovingly and Filch was grinding his teeth, never a good sign.

"You young brats _always_ think that what is happening to you is an emergency," Filch sneered.

"Well, guess what you retarded prat!" Sirius suddenly called, flaring up. "This _is_ an emergency!"

Filch narrowed his eyes and sucked his thin lips in his mouth, making it look like a remarkable bad imitation of a furious McGonagall. "Students weren't allowed to act like that in my time!" he yelled.

It took Filch another second to realize the vapidity of that final sneer, because the caretaker wrinkled his nose before muttering moodily: "As it is, you are no longer students but guests. And I'm compelled to obey your request."

Filch lead the way and guided them through the familiar halls and corridors that Sirius and Mary had once called home. When they were standing in front of the gargoyle that was blocking the passage to Dumbledore's office, Filch – keen on leaving them behind as soon as possible - grunted: "The password is "Lemon Drops". Goodnight." And he scurrried away.

"Goodnight Mr. Filch," Sirius and Mary replied in unison before giving the password and watching the gargoyle come to life. They travelled up to Dumbledore's office in silence. Mary was wondering if she should try and comfort Sirius, but when she studied his closed expression, she decided that it would be best to leave him alone.

Mary softly knocked on the door and when she heard Dumbledore say "Enter", she walked inside, Sirius following closely behind her. The Headmaster was looking genuinely surprised when he looked up from studying an ancient-looking book. "Mary, Sirius, what a pleasant surprise! Please sit down."

They walked towards the desk and sat down. Mary looked around the office and noticed that the portraits of the former Hogwarts Headmasters seemed to be asleep, some of them snoring loudly as they were leaning against their frames. She looked at Dumbledore when he asked: "Am I correct in assuming that this is not a casual visit?"

"Well..." Mary said after looking at Sirius, who remained reticent. "It's Regulus, Sirius's brother. He has betrayed Voldemort and tracked us down for help."

Dumbledore frowned. "Betrayed?"

"Well, I don't know the whole story, but Regulus has managed to destroy a certain locket that belonged to Voldemort. A locket Voledmort needed to ensure his invincibility."

Dumbledore shot her a thoughtful look. "I see. And what was Voldemort planning on doing with that locket?"

"Eh…" she said, shooting a look at Sirius.

"Did, not planning," Sirius suddenly said quietly, looking up from closely studying the thumbring on his left hand. "He's already done it. Regulus said that Voldemort had to place something from himself - and apparently he achieved that "something" by committing murder - into the locket and that this would somehow reassure his invincible status."

Sirius's explanation was followed by an ominous silence. Dumbledore said nothing at first. He walked over to his bookcase, pulled out a particularly battered-looking book and turned the pages until he found what he was looking for. The only sound came from the snoring portraits when Mary watched Dumbledore slowly walking back to his desk and sitting down, absorbing the words on the pages of the book. From the back of the room, Fawkes the Phoenix made a soft sound and Mary turned back in her seat. The bird looked magnificent as ever and Mary was still admiring his rich golden and red colors when Dumbledore said: "I fear that Lord Voldemort turned to a form of magic even I did not, and perhaps I was being foolishly naïve here, foresee."

"What do you mean by that?" Sirius asked anxiously.

"I suspect - and I hope, probably in vain, that I am incorrect – that Voldemort has succeeded in making a Horcrux."

Mary and Sirius stared at Dumbledore in confusion. They had never heard that word before in their lives. "A what?" Mary asked.

"A Horcrux," Dumbledore repeated. "It's an object which secures part of a wizard's soul after he or she committed murder and by doing so, makes the perpetrator immortal."

"But that's awful!" Mary cried before she could help herself.

"Indeed, it is one of the foulest fields of magic that very few wizards today know about," Dumbledore nodded gravely before looking down at Sirius. "But as I understand, Regulus succeeded in destroying the locket."

"He clams that he has taken care of it," Sirius nodded. "But how can you tell Voldemort isn't aware of that?"

"If I'm not mistaken, the maker is unable to detect whether or not his Horcrux is still intact. Where is Regulus at this moment?"

"Hiding out somewhere on the street. But I told him to meet us in front of St. Paul's Cathedral tomorrow at noon. I also said that he would be safe with us from that moment."

Dumbledore nodded. "Naturally. He will have to go into hiding for a while, but he should be alright. So I'll see you tomorrow, then," he said, getting up from his chair. "You might want to bring along James, Remus or Peter as well."

"I'm not sure if Remus can make it because of his work, but James will be there. And Peter will want to come along too, I'm sure," Sirius replied.

When Sirius and Mary were about to leave Dumbledore's office, he called after them: "I know that it is late, but it's the first night of term and I am sure Jenna would be delighted to see you, Mary."

Mary turned around and smiled at Dumbledore, who gave her a tiny wink. "Thanks Albus," she grinned before looking at Sirius, who looked dreadfully cut up by the whole situation. Although Mary would love to pay her little sister a visit, she suddenly realized that Sirius could never act all cheerful around Jenna tonight. And even if he could, she would never want to do that to him. So she smiled at Dumbledore apologetically and said: "Actually, we should be heading home. Tomorrow is going to be another long day for all of us. And I'll just write Jenna a long letter in the morning instead."

After calmly observing her for another moment, Dumbledore gave Mary an understanding nod and wished them a safe journey home. Once again, Sirius didn't speak much on their way down to the Entrance Hall, nor did he open his mouth when they were crossing the grounds to the gates. It was only when they were about to disapparate that Sirius suddenly reached for her hand and squeezed it tightly. "Thank you," he mumbled.

Mary looked into his eyes and, contrary to being unable to tell Regulus when he thanked her for healing him earlier that night, she squeezed back softly and whispered: "You're welcome."

- End of Update –

**A/N: Will Regulus turn up at the cathedral the next day? And will he accept help from the Order? You'll find that out in the next chapter. I hope you liked this one. Please R&R! -Mara**


	49. A Little Too Late

A/N: Next chapter on Everlasting

**A/N: Next chapter on Everlasting. Enjoy and R&R please!**

**Chapter Forty-Nine**

The following morning, Mary woke up about two minutes before her alarm clock – one of the few Muggle artefacts left in the household - would have gone off. She yawned and considered staying in bed, until she realized that Pierce would be teaching the first class of the day. It was crucial to show her face in his lessons, because he would be assigning the trainee posts on the Spell Damage-department. She sat up straight, pulled a hand through her tangled long hair and, remembering that Sirius didn't have to wake up for another hour, quickly reset the timer before she got out of bed to take a shower and brush her teeth.

When she returned to the bedroom about twenty minutes later, Sirius was still asleep. Mary opened the wardrobe and wondered what she was going to wear today. Eventually she pulled out a short grey skirt and white top. She dressed as quietly as possible and put her hair in a low messy bun. When she flopped on the edge of the bed to put on her shoes, Sirius stirred and opened his eyes. "Hey," he grunted.

Mary looked over her shoulder from zipping up her left high-heeled boot and smiled. "Hi," she whispered and got up to grab her school bag from a chair in the corner of the room.

"What time is it?" Sirius asked, yawning.

"Six thirty," she replied as she swung the bag over her shoulder. She shot him a concerned look. "Will you be alright?"

He arched an eyebrow. "Last time I checked I was still able to shower and dress on my own, yes."

"You know that's not what I meant," Mary said as she walked to his side of the bed and kneeled down, placing her arms right next to his pillow. "I'm sorry I cannot be there today."

Sirius yawned and stretched his arms. "There are going to be enough people around. Prongs, Lily, Moody, Wormtail and Dumbledore too. Besides, we all know you have got to suck up to Pierce to get that spot on Spell Damage."

Mary smiled and put her chin on her folded arms. "Please be careful out there," she whispered.

"There won't be an entire Death Eater-delegation waiting for us. Besides, I'm confident that Regulus is on our side. I know him a lot better than he thinks and last night there was no lie in his eyes."

Mary reached out to caress his face and at her touch, he closed his eyes. "I know," she said quietly. "But I can't help but having a very bad feeling about this. Just promise to watch your back, okay?"

"I will," Sirius nodded sincerely.

"I should go," Mary sighed as she got back up. She reached back down to give Sirius a kiss on the forehead, but he met her halfway, giving her a fierce kiss. When they broke apart several minutes later, she grinned at him. "And what did I do to deserve a goodbye like that?"

Sirius chuckled while pushing her back up. "I don't expect seeing you again until much later tonight and I had to give you something to get through the day."

"Well, I'm certainly "Siriusfied" for now," Mary laughed before she reached for her wand to put it in the bag and walked to the center of the room. "I might need a more extensive fix tonight, though," she added as an afterthought.

Sirius smirked. "My Lady, you've got a date," he said in a low and jokingly grave voice.

Mary winked back cheekily before disapparating to her school. She would have expected to be unable to focus on her school work when she knew what was going on in other parts in London at the same time, but Pierce's lesson was about Unforgivable Curses and what Healers could do about them. Mary had always been fascinated by those Curses, even though they were causing so much trouble at the moment. She wasn't the only one. The entire class was on the edge of their seats, attentively listening to what their Professor had to say.

Pierce was relatively short about Avada Kedavra, stating that it was always final and nothing could be done against it. Instead, he spent most if the time explaining what damage the Cruciatus Curse instigated. Of course they all knew it caused the victim to suffer intolerable pain, but Pierce explained that the curse basically penetrated the body and attacked the victim's nervous system, highly overburdening the nerves, which caused the agonizing feeling of your bones getting splintered from inside out.

Mary shivered in her seat. She had never been struck by the Cruciatus Curse, but she could imagine what it must feel like. And Pierce wasn't quite done yet. He continued to state that Cruciatus – if being "applied" often or long enough – could be just as fatal as Avada Kedavra. The victim would either go insane or – according to him if that person was lucky enough - die.

Pierce compared it to a heavily water-filled balloon that couldn't possible hold any more water. "Yet more is being poured into the balloon anyway," he said. "It swells, and swells, until: BANG!" He banged his fist on the table and the entire class gasped. "The balloon explodes," he continued calmy. "Basically the same thing happens when a body overdoses on Cruciatus. Either the excruciating pain will drive you mad, or your nervous system will be irretrievably damaged, and you die. I reckon many people would prefer Avada Kedavra. I definitely would. More fatal, but - according to my respected Swedish colleague Gustav Persson who did research on the killing curse – painless."

Pierce's words were followed by a tense silence in the classroom. It seemed that none of the Unforgivable Curses could be cured. Luckily, Pierce continued to the Imperius Curse and raised everyone's spirits by informing them that St. Mungo's was working on the development of a potion that would strengthen a person's will to fight the Imperius Curse. There was only one side effect left: the user's skin would temporarily turn purple. Considering the type of wizards that usually applied the Imperius Curse and the fact that they wouldn't hesitate to use Avada Kedavra as well, giving away your disguise like that would be suicide.

After he'd given them an extensive list on the potion's current ingredients, Pierce ordered the students to write an essay on what could possibly remove this unfortunate side-effect before dismissing them. And even though they had to follow several other classes throughout the day, everyone kept talking about what Pierce had said about the Unforgivables.

At the end of the day, Mary was talking to Ching-Lu and a few other classmates while they were standing in the schoolyard, enjoying the sunshine on this late September afternoon. Mary suddenly realized that it was already six o'clock and that she had hardly thought about Regulus all day. She immediately felt a stab of guilt. It was rather selfish to be excitedly discussing the Unforgivables when her friends might have been dealing with them in real life. But if everything had worked out the way it should, Regulus would have been brought to safety by now.

Mary bit her lower lip. She would be lying if she said she liked Regulus, but the guy _had_ redeemed himself. What's more, he had risked his own life to destroy Voldemort's Horcrux. Mary never knew a former Slytherin could be capable of committing such an altruistic deed. She was hardly listening to Zack Banks, who was just saying that St.Mungo's Spell Damage-department couldn't handle the current amount of Unforgivable-victims and was considering to open a new department, strictly meant for Imperius and Cruciatus-victims. She finally looked up when she got elbowed by Ching-Lu, who said: "Isn't that your boyfriend?"

Mary followed Ching-Lu's gaze and noticed that it was in fact Sirius who was waiting for her at the other end of the schoolyard. She waved hesitantly. Wasn't he supposed to be with Regulus to discuss more facts about the locket Horcrux with Dumbledore and the others? What was going on?

"He is, isn't he?" Ching-Lu asked. When Mary nodded, she sighed dreamily. "Merlin, he's so handsome. You should consider yourself richly blessed to be dating a hottie like that!"

Mary smiled back absent-mindedly. "Yeah, I know. He's amazing. But eh… I should go over to him, I suppose," she mumbled. "See ya."

She started to cross the schoolyard. "Good luck on Pierce's essay!" Ching-Lu called after her and Mary momentarily turned back to smile at her friend before striding over to Sirius. "What are-," she started when she reached him, but the last part of the question got caught up in her throat.

Sirius looked terrible. He wasn't physically injured, but looked like his heart had been ripped out. His skin was white as a sheet and his eyes looked glassy, as if he wasn't even aware of her standing in front of him. "Sirius," Mary said anxiously as she put her hand against his cheek and was shocked when he moved his head out of her reach. "What… What happened?"

Sirius did not reply immediately. Finally, when Mary was starting to wonder if she should repeat the question, he opened his mouth and said: "Death. Death happened."

Mary clapped a hand over her mouth. "Who?"

Sirius finally looked at her and he didn't even have to say anything, because she'd already read the answer in his eyes. "Oh God," she stammered. "Regulus?"

Sirius nodded gravely and avoided her gaze by staring at the ground. "But… how?" she asked.

"We were waiting in front of St. Paul's Cathedral," Sirius answered numbly, as if he wasn't really aware of the words coming out of his mouth. "But he never showed up. Not much later, it became apparent why. Because we might have planned to meet him, but the Death eaters beat us to it."

"But how… Where?"

"Avada Kedavra," he replied before kicking an empty can of coke across the sidewalk. "Apparently Regulus – foolishly of course - decided that it would be safer to spend the night in a hotel nearby the cathedral. Death Eaters apparated into his room and killed him in his sleep. They think it was a heart attack, though, those Muggle eh… ples… p'leasemen, what are they called again?"

"Police officers," she whispered.

"Yeah those," Sirius said shortly. "Anyway, my dear mother got notifed by the Ministry this afternoon and she demanded that his…" - he swallowed with difficuly - "body will be taken to her and my father's house. I assume they've started to arrange his funeral by now."

Sirius's voice sounded rather mechanic. It seemed like he was dictating her to write a letter rather than explaining how his younger brother had been murdered. Mary didn't know what to say or how to handle the situation, but she instinctively reached for his hand to give him a tight hug, only to be roughly pushed back by him. "Don't", Sirius said in the same unresponsive way. "Look," he continued when he noticed the shocked look in her eyes, "Just… Don't try and comfort me. I just came here to get you. Dumbledore and Moody are still investigating the case, but everyone else is at James and Lily's. I told James we'd meet them there."

This time it was Mary who didn't reply. She was still trying to get over the fact that Regulus was dead. She could feel tears stinging in her eyes by the injustice of it all. It took a lot of nerve for that guy to destroy the Horcrux, only to be killed the night before he would have gone into hiding.

"Mary?" Sirius repeated. "Did you hear what I said? We need to go to James and Lily's house."

"Yeah," Mary replied in a thin voice. "Yeah… I heard you."

She sensed that Sirius was now shooting her a questioning look, but before he could say anything else, she quickly disapparated to the front of James and Lily's house. Only a second later, she could hear the whip-like crack of Sirius apparating next to her. They walked up together and Mary only had to knock once before it opened and a pale Lily appeared, pulling her into a close hug. By doing so, her best friend provided the comfort Sirius didn't give her and Mary gratefully hugged her friend back. "Thanks," she whispered.

Lily smiled sadly. "I'm just glad you're here. Come in."

They followed Lily to the living room. Mary tried to reach for Sirius's hand on the way, but once again he rejected the gesture by pulling his hand away. This was hurtful, but she didn't press the matter and respected what he was asking her: to leave him alone. Instead, she focused on the other people present in the room. She wasn't surprised to see Peter, but to her surprise, Remus and Brice were there as well.

Brice gave her an encouraging smile, as if she knew that Mary was feeling disheartened because she couldn't comfort Sirius the way she would have liked to. Remus watched her for a moment before he walked over to put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Just give the lad some space."

Mary looked from Sirius – who was walking to the kitchen with James and Peter - to Remus in surprise. "How did you…?"

He smiled wryly. "I probably know Sirius better than he knows himself. His distant – and unjust, I might add – behaviour towards you actually means that he's realizing there's a chance he could lose you too."

"But-"

"-Give him some time, I'm sure he'll come around eventually," Remus said, patting her gently on the back before he also walked towards the kitchen. He shot her a last significant look before closing the door behind him. Mary turned around and noticed that Brice and Lily were the only ones left in the room. Lily shot her a look. "Would you like some tea?"

It was still hot outside, but Mary felt that she could really use something to warm up the coldness in her heart. She nodded and flopped down on the couch. "Thanks Lil, I'd really like that."

Lily walked off to the kitchen. The room was now completely silent, with the exception of the muffled voices that could be heard from the kitchen. Mary had the impression that Brice was remaining silent on purpose and waited for her to say something first. The silence was only making her feel worse, so Mary cleared her throat and asked: "How long have you been here?"

"Remus picked me up from work about an hour ago," Brice said. She shot Mary a close look. "Look, it's awful what happened, especially since you and Sirius saw him last night…"

Mary smiled wryly. "Saw? I healed Regulus."

Brice lifted an eyebrow and Mary sighed. "He was badly injured," she explained. "I told him it was a critical wound that had to be healed at once. I lied. He was bleeding badly, but nowhere near dying. If Sirius and I would have taken him to St. Mungo's, he would still be alive."

"Mary," her friend said firmly. "If Regulus hadn't joined the Death Eaters, he wouldn't have had these problems in the first place."

"She's right," Lily – carrying a tray with a teapot, glasses and a bowl of biscuits – said. "If's aren't going to get you anywhere."

Lily poured them all some tea before also flopping down on the couch. "Anyway, you are not to blame."

Mary shrugged. "Sirius seems to think so."

"What?"

"Whatever gives you that idea?" Brice frowned.

Mary had started to wrap a lock of hair around her finger. "Last night, when I wanted to offer Regulus to stay with us for the night, Sirius sent him away because he didn't want to put us in any danger. If I'm not mistaken, he now thinks that if it wasn't for me, Regulus could have stayed at his place and thus, lived."

"But that doesn't make any sense!" Brice called.

Mary closed her eyes. Brice sometimes had the annoying habit of stating the obvious. "I know that," she said warily while rubbing her eyes.

Lily reached for her hand. "Oh Mare, of course Sirius doesn't blame you! He's just looking for a way to deal with his grief. He shut out his family and brother for years until he finally opened himself up to Regulus last night. Sirius wanted to give him another chance, and now his little brother gets killed before they could have gotten a real chance to reconcile their differences. That has got to hurt."

Mary sniffed and took a sip from her tea. She hadn't looked at it that way and had to admit that Lily's explanation made more sense. "I suppose you're right," she said. "But I still don't know how to deal with this. I mean, it seems like his head is on another planet or something. It's like talking to a freaking wall!"

Brice shrugged and took another biscuit from the bowl. "All you can do is be there for him."

"Exactly," Lily agreed. "Sirius isn't very talkative about his emotions, but he will come to you eventually. Now, we'd better join the guys to find out what they're talking about."

The three of them picked up their tea and walked to the kitchen. When Brice opened the door, the guys stopped talking momentarily and watched them walk inside in silence. Mary noticed there was a scribbling-pad in front of Remus; apparently he had been taking notes. She automatically walked to the spare seat next to Sirius, but she changed her mind at the last minute and sat down between James and Peter instead. She could sense Sirius's eyes on her, but she didn't feel the need to explain. She was supposed to leave him alone after all, wasn't she?

"What have you guys discussed so far?" Lily asked as she sat down next to Sirius instead.

"The locket Horcrux, mostly," Remus replied. He pushed the scribbling-pad over to Lily. "The things we now know for sure, but with Regulus dying before he could clarify more about the Horcrux itself or his motives... Well, that does complicate things a bit."

James looked at Mary. "Can you think of something Sirius might have forgotten to mention?"

Mary skimmed Remus's notes and shook her head. "No," she said in a small voice. "But I wasn't present the whole time."

"Really?" Peter asked, looking intrigued. "What were you doing, then?"

"Cooking."

Despite the gloomy atmosphere, James snorted. "Merlin's Beard, Mary! You're turning into the perfect housewife more and more."

She failed to give him more than a half-smile. When James noticed her expression, he quickly put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. "Come here you," he said softly and stroke her back gently.

Mary was so grateful for James giving her the hug she so desperately needed that she placed her head on his shoulder. She was more than aware of the entire table – including Sirius - watching her, but she couldn't help but giving a quiet sob.

"Shhhh," James said soothingly, still stroking her. "It's going to be alright."

"I don't even know why I'm crying," Mary said as she sat back up and angrily wiped a tear from her eye. "I didn't even like the guy that much. Merlin knows he wasn't fond of me."

"Hating your guts was more like it," Lily observed dryly. "But that doesn't justify the way he died."

"No, it doesn't," Mary said while fiddling with the feather of Remus's quill.

After a moment of silence, Peter announced that he had to go somewhere. "Have you got a hot date, Wormtail?" James asked with a cheeky grin and Peter flushed. "You _are_ having a date!" James said, no longer grinning but looking quite surprised.

"It's Alison," Peter replied with a shrug.

"Oh, how is Alison doing these days?" Brice asked, looking interested.

"Well, that's what I'm going to find out. I ran in on her the other day and she asked me out for a drink, so…"

"Well, have fun," Remus smiled before winking at him.

"I'll try, as much fun as you can have on a disastrous day like this," Peter said before looking at Sirius. "You gonna be alright, mate?"

Sirius looked up from staring at a coffee spot on the table and attempted to smile, but it turned out to be more of a grimace. Peter shot him another concerned look before he disapparated, leaving the rest of them in silence.

"Mary," Sirius suddenly said after another long pause. "I think we should go home as well."

Mary nodded and got up to hug James, Lily, Remus and Brice. "We see you guys again tomorrow at the meeting, okay?" Lily asked.

She nodded before she quickly followed Sirius, who had already disapparated to their house. It felt surreal to be coming home on a night like this. They had only left the house behind this morning, but the place felt completely different already. Frankly, it was quite depressing to be home on a night that they had been planning to spend together, but had ended up in mourning over Regulus's death instead.

When Mary was putting their travel cloaks on the hallstand, Sirius suddenly placed a hand on her arm, the first time he touched her since telling her about Regulus's death. "Mare," he said softly. "I was shocked to see you cry. And I'm really sorry that I cannot be there for you right now. It's just… too hard. I… I need some time to…"

Despite her longing to be held and comforted by Sirius like James had done earlier, Mary knew that he was unable to give her that attention right now and that he would never accept her taking care of _him_. All she could do was following Remus and Brice's advice: be there for him when the time would come that he _did_ need her. Mary gave him a sad smile and placed her hand over his before saying softly: "You take all the time you need."

End of Update

**A/N – The next chapter will be told from Sirius's pov. It's about how he comes to terms with his real feelings for Mary. Oh, and another beloved character from the HP-series will make an appearance! Care to guess who that might be? A mountain of cauldron cakes for everyone who gets it right! For now, I hope you liked this chapter. Let me know what you think :D –Mara.**


	50. Family Matters

A/N: So here it is

**A/N: So here it is. Next update on Everlasting. It's funny: none of the people that reviewed got the appearance of the beloved HP-character right. Which is understandable, since there are so many to chose from. Anyway, I won't keep it a secret any longer: it's Tonks! :D **

**I hope you'll like the chapter. Please don't forget to leave a review when you drop by. Thanks!**

**Chapter Fifty**

It is a curious thing when someone close to you has died. Whereas your own life momentarily seems to have stopped moving, the rest of the world goes on like nothing has happened. As if it didn't matter that someone had simply stopped to exist in this world. Or, in this case: that a healthy man had been murdered in the prime of his life and, since he died at such a young age, never really got a chance to lead the long and happy life he deserved.

Deserved? Was Sirius really feeling that sorry for his brother? Of course he was. Regulus might have been an insufferable git most of the time, but he did not deserve to die the way he did. Sirius sighed and shifted in his seat. Although he was currently attending Regulus's funeral, he barely understood a word from what the priest was saying about his little brother. For one, because he was sitting at the very back of the church and the priest had a very soft voice (and obviously didn't know how to use _Sonorus_). And two, because his mind was somewhere else, like it had been most of the time all week.

Sirius realized that he hadn't been much use to the Order these past few days. Although he had attended every meeting and even joined Gideon, Alice and Remus on a mission to search for a cottage (once owned by Voldemort himself) near Gloucestershire, his mind was usually occupied by thoughts of Regulus and Mary. Because contrary to what she may be believing, Sirius was actually relieved that he didn't allow Regulus to stay with them on the night he died. Sirius hardly dared to think what could have happened if he had not sent him away. The thought of Death Eaters bursting into their house and killing Mary as well as Regulus was almost too gruesome to imagine.

Sirius's mind got jerked back to the present when he noticed that the other visitors of the funeral were getting up and forming a line behind Regulus's coffin; apparently the memorial service had come to an end. When the coffin – which was being carried by six tall men in dark suits – and the following queue of relatives was slowly passing him, Sirius remained seated. Once again he was very grateful for James lending him his Invisibility Cloak. This way he was able to attend the funeral anonymously. A real blessing, because Sirius wasn't planning on getting reunited with his family any time soon, least of all today.

When the last guests had left the church and were walking towards the graveyard, Sirius finally got up as well and quickly slipped through the large front doors of the church that got slammed shut right behind him. He followed the line of people – who were now gathering in front of a majestic-looking family tomb – and decided to lean against a nearby tree so that he could follow the remaining part of the funeral from a safe distance.

While the priest was sprinkling holy water over Regulus's coffin, Sirius took the oppurtunity to closely study those familiar faces he had come to resent so much over the years. There was his father, who – to his surprise – looked actually broken and much older than he could remember, although his superior facial expression was still intact. The Malfoys, including Lucius and Narcissa, were also present, as were the Notts, the Crabbes and Bellatrix and her husband Rodolphus Lestrange.

And there… his mother. Sirius could not block out the familiar aches in his heart when he looked at her, nor was he able to ignore the sudden but vivid memory of his mother yelling at him when he was younger: _"You, Sirius Black, are a disgrace to this family. You never appreciate the privileges of being a Black."_ And another sample, from the night he left Grimmauld Place right before his seventeenth birthday, when she viciously hissed: _"I wish you'd never been born!"_

Sirius sighed and shook his head to get rid of the old, but hurtful memories. Instead, he focused on watching his mother's expression. Even he could see that she was grieved, but not even a single tear was shimmering in her eyes. Not that Sirius would have expected his mother to cry, because he knew she considered that to be a weakness. But still, to show no visible sadness whatsoever… That was a bit extreme, even for her.

After Regulus's coffin had been placed in the tomb, the priest and the funeral guests started to make their way back to the church. As soon as they were well out of view, Sirius got out of his hiding place and walked to the Black family tomb. He had never visited the grave before and only realized how big it was when he was standing right in front of it. The grave was an enormous structure, built in a rectangle form and solely made out of black and dark green marble. The Black family crest and the motto "Toujours Pur" were engraved in the front wall. Below that, all the names and birth and death dates of the Black relatives that were resting inside had been listed. Sirius looked for Regulus's name and there it was:

_In loving memory of our only son_

**REGULUS ARCTURUS BLACK**  
March 10 1961 - September 16 1979

Despite the fact he was staring at the grave of his younger brother, Sirius couldn't help but giving a loud snort. Their _only_ son? What on earth had happened to him, then? He knew he had been disowned, that was not the point, but for his parents to now completely ignore his existence, that was just absurd. He was still called Sirius _Black_ after all.

His smile slowly faded while he was staring at Regulus's grave. His younger brother… Killed the night before the Order would have offered him the protection and guidance he so desperately needed. His waisted little life wiped off the earth before he and Sirius ever got the chance to really talk things through…

Sirius sighed, slid off the Invisibility Cloak and crouched down in front of the grave. "Well bro," he said quietly. "There you are, then. I'm not really sure what to say. I eh… I know we had our differences-" he suddenly laughed aloud. "-That, and I'm sure you'd agree, would be the understatement of the year. But I want you to know that I'm glad that you came to me for help, because at least now I know that you were a good guy after all. Naïve, though… Possily even obtuse and severely brainwashed when you decided to join Voldemort's Death Eaters, but you did realize you made a mistake in time and stepped out. An act you had to pay for with your life. But know this… Even though you never got the chance to really explain what you did with that locket, we will manage to solve that mystery eventually. I hereby promise you that you didn't die for nothing, Reg, even if that means I have to-"

"Hey cous."

Sirius grabbed hold of his wand and wheeled around at the same time, half-expecting it to be Bellatrix or Narcissa, only to instantly lower his wand when he noticed who it was. "Andromeda," Sirius said, looking surprised.

A witch in her early thirties with short black hair and a kind face was smiling down on him. "Hello Sirius," she said kindly. "I see you also decided to wait until everybody else left."

"No, I didn't. I attended the memorial service."

Andromeda lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "And no one tried to jinx you? How peculiar."

Sirius chuckled. "Not really, I was wearing that," he said and he pointed at James's Invisibility Cloak on the ground.

Andromeda laughed. "Very clever."

"Indeed. How about you?"

"We hid out in that ancient and – thankfully – deserted tomb at the other end of the graveyard."

"We?"

Andromeda nodded. "Yes, Ted and Nymphadora as well. They should be here soon, actually. In fact… Oh look, there they are!"

Sirius followed his cousin's gaze and noticed that a tall man with long blonde hair was approaching them. A little girl with shoulderlength brown hair and wearing a red coat and matching beret was holding his hand.

"Hi honey," Ted said to Andromeda when he had kissed her on the cheek and was holding out his hand to Sirius. "How have you been?"

"Good, mostly," Sirius replied as he shook Ted's hand. "Unless you're referring to my brother's recent murder."

Ted smiled sadly. "Yes, it is very sad. He was still so young…"

Andromeda frowned. "Why keeps everyone forgetting that he was a Death Eater? I know that practically made him a hero in the eyes of your mother, but let's be honest: he wasn't exactly the perfect example for future generations."

"Well actually…" Sirius started, but then he remembered that Albus had advised him to keep the fact that Regulus had succeeded to destroy Voldemort's Horcrux a secret and hastily closed his mouth.

Both Ted and Andromeda were shooting him curious looks, but then Nymphadora suddenly drew her attention. "Oh no, sweetie," Andromeda said as she crouched down in front of her daughter, who had managed to turn her brown hair into a bright shade of orange. "What did I tell you about transforming in public?"

The little girl shot her mother a guilty look. "That I should only do that when I have to, because it can scare the Muggles."

"That's right," her mother smiled. "Now can you transform back on your own or would you like me to do it for you?"

Nymphadora didn't answer. Instead, she screwed up her eyes in utmost concentration as if she was trying to solve a very difficult sum. Whatever she did worked, because her hair went back to being brown at once.

"That a girl!" Ted called merrily while patting Nymhadora gently on the back. "It's the whole Metamorphmagus-situation," he explained to Sirius. "She's just beginning to realize she has that special power. Sometimes it's getting a bit out of hand, so we have to be strict about it."

Sirius looked at Nymphadora. It had been almost two years since he had seen her and she had grown so much in that time. He noticed that she was holding a single maginifent white rose in her hands. "That's a lovely flower you've got there, Nymphadora," he said and he pointed at the rose. "Is that for me?"

"No," Nymphadora replied as she shook her head verhemently. "Is for Reg'lus."

Sirius had almost forgotten that Nymphadora always had trouble with pronouncing Regulus's name correctly. He smiled and held out his hand to her. "Shall we bring it to him together?"

Nymphadora nodded happily and took his hand. Sirius guided her over to the family grave. When they were standing in front of it, she looked up at the tomb in awe. "It's so big."

"Well yeah," he replied. "That's because there are a lot of people in there. It's not just for Regulus."

"Oh," Nymphadora said. After a moment of silence, she reasoned: "Well, he should feel less alone, then."

"I guess so."

"When you die, will you be moving in there as well?"

Sirius opened his mouth and closed it again. He assumed Andromeda had told Nymphadora something about her being disowned by her own family, but how much did the girl know exactly? He decided to stay as neutral as possible and said: "I don't know, Nymphadora. Maybe I would like to have an entire tomb on my own."

"A _whole_ tomb all by yourself?" Nymphadora gasped.

"Hu-hum, I like my space," he grinned. "Shall we put the rose on his memorial stone?"

Nymphadora nodded and was about to place the rose over Regulus's name, until she changed her mind and leaned over to Sirius to whisper: "Mummie wanted a white rose, but I like color."

"What kind of color?"

"Pink. I love pink. But mummie said you shouldn't bring pink roses to a funeral."

Sirius grinned and pulled his wand out of his jeans pocket. "Mummie's right, but maybe I can do something about it. So you want the rose to be pink?"

Nymphadora giggled. "Yes pink! With eh… purple dots."

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "Dots?"

"Yes," she nodded seriously. "Like polka dots. I think Reg'lus would really like that."

"Alright then," Sirius sighed and tapped the white rose once, turning it shocking pink with purple dots in an instant. Nymphadroa cried happily and gently pplaced the colorful rose on top of Regulus's memorial stone. After they had admired her beautiful flower for a while, Sirius gently took her by the hand and guided her back to Andromeda and Ted, who picked his daughter up and gave her tight hug. "We're going to walk to the other end," he explained to Andromeda and Sirius. "My grandmother is also buried on this graveyard. It was good to see you again, Sirius."

"See ya, Ted," Sirius smiled back and he reached over to kiss Nymphadora on the nose. "I'll come round soon, okay?"

Nymphadora nodded happily and kept waving at him as Ted, who was still carrying her, walked away. "I'll join you in a moment," Andromeda called after her husband before she looked back at Sirius. "So cous," she said more seriously. "How are you _really_ feeling?"

Sirius shrugged. "I meant what I said before. Regulus's death has affected me more than I expected, but other than that… I'm doing fine, actually."

"And you don't miss having your family around?"

"My friends are my family now."

Andromeda smiled. "Yeah, I got that as much. But they're not here with you."

"They all offered to come along, but I didn't let them. I had to do this on my own, you know?"

She shot him an examining look. "Right. And what about… Mary, is it?"

Sirius shot her a look. "Yeah. Same thing, really. I just didn't want to bother her with all this."

"Hmmm," Andromeda nodded while closely studying the dates on the graves that surrounded the Black family grave. "Well, I don't know Mary, so obviously I cannot speak for her but in general, girlfriends like to take care of their boyfriends when they're going through a rough time. I mean it, Sirius," she said while she shot him a close look. "Don't shut her out. Well, Ted and Nymphadora are probably waiting for me, so I'd better dash. Drop by when you've got a chance, okay? Nymphadora would really like that."

"Don't worry, I will," Sirius said and waved at Andromeda as she walked off. He headed over to a distant wooden bench under a large willow tree and sat down to think about what Andromeda had said. He had to admit she had a point. He knew that he hadn't exactly been the easiest person to live with this past week. And yet… Mary seemed to cope with it. She respected him when he wanted to be left alone, was there for him if he did need someone to talk (or in his case, shout) to and had been endlessly patient with his grouchy moods. And finally, she had agreed – even it was reluctantly – that he could go to Regulus's funeral alone. It wasn't easy to admit, but Sirius realized that if it hadn't been for her, he might have gone insane. And also… If Mary loved him so much that she could stand the way he had behaved towards her last week, shouldn't that mean that they were really meant to be together? And that their love should be celebrated with… an engagement?

Sirius sat up straight from gazing at an old lady who was watering the plants on her husband's grave. Was he really ready for this? If he and Mary got married, would she one day perhaps take care of his grave like that old lady was doing? More importantly: was he capable of being a married man? He had witnessed James marrying Lily and that seemed to have made their bond even stronger than it already was, but he was not James. James had loved Lily for six years before she agreed to go out with him, whereas Sirius had dated dozens of girls before he realized that he was supposed to be with Mary. However, the question that was troubling him the most was: would she actually _want_ to marry him?

Sirius wondered if he should finally buy that engagement ring he had been watching in the shop window in the jewelry store in Diagon Alley for months. But buying that ring would make his consideration rather definite, wouldn't it? Unless… "Yes!" Sirius suddenly shouted. He jumped up from the bench and ignored the annoyed stare from the old lady. Instead, he hurried to a nearby group of trees so he could disapparate to Diagon Alley without being seen by anyone.

When he was walking through Diagon Alley, Sirius was grinning to himself because of the cleverness of his plan. What he was going to do was: he would buy the ring and save it (and the proposal) for the _opportune_ moment. Which could be days, weeks or perhaps even another year. Sirius entered the jewelry store and confidently bought the ring without thinking twice. When he exited the shop about twenty minutes later, he was – for the first time that week - feeling happy again. He looked down at the little square box in his hand and couldn't resist the temptation. He opened the box and there it was: a beautiful and modern open-sided platinum ring with one shiny diamant in the middle.

"Hey Sirius!" He suddenly heard someone calling behind them.

Sirius - still holding the open box in his hand - turned around and noticed it was Fabian approaching him. He quickly snapped the box shut, but Fabian's eyes had already dropped to it. He sniggered. "About bloody time, mate."

For a moment, Sirius considered to come up with a lame excuse, but he figured that Fabian would be on to him anyway. He grinned back sheepishly. "Yeah, I suppose so."

"That took you long enough, though," Fabian interrupted him. "I would have asked a priceless girl like that ages ago, but never mind me. When are you going to do it? Tonight?"

"Eh… Well, here's the thing…"

"Tomorrow?"

"Actually, I don't want to rush-"

"The day after tomorrow?"

Fabian's eyes were narrowing more with every question and before Sirius realized what he was doing, he heard himself say: "Yeah, then. I'm going to ask her the day after tomorrow."

"That's fantastic! So by the time of the next Order meeting, you guys will be engaged."

Sirius smiled weakly. "Er... Yes. If she'll have me."

Fabian burst out laughing. "If she'll _have_ you? Are you nuts? She will be over the moon!"

"Really?" he asked.

Fabian patted him on the shoulder. "Listen mate, I tried almost everything to steal that girl away from you, but she just wouldn't give in."

"Maybe that is just saying something about your skills to conquer a girl's heart," Sirius replied teasingly.

He chuckled. "Perhaps, but when Mary and I were discussing my feelings for her, she told me that she would never love another man the way she loves you."

Sirius frowned. "When on earth did you talk to her about your crush?"

"And that matters because? Come on man, there is no way she is going to turn you down. And then we could start planning another wedding. Merlin knows we could all use another good party. Anyway, I should head over to Hogwarts. I promised Hagrid I would help him to fix a few stands on the Quidditch pitch. And eh… Good luck!" Fabian gave him a final teasing wink before heading off in the opposite direction of the street.

"Bye," Sirius replied absent-mindedly. He watched Fabian disappearing into the crowd until reality hit him with force: he was going to propose to Mary within two days. "Bugger!" he muttered to himself. Although he wasn't planning to wait much longer until he was ready to ask Mary to marry him, two days was a little too soon to be making up his mind. But he had no choice. Fabian would never understand it if Sirius told him that although he had bought the ring, he wasn't ready to be getting engaged just yet.

Sirius pulled a hand through his hair and closed his eyes. What he needed was some good advice. Remus was the first friend that sprang to mind. Surely his sagacious friend would be able to talk some sense into him. But then Sirius remembered that it was James who was already married, he _had_ proposed to Lily. And more importantly: she had said yes. "Yep," he thought as he was making up his mind. James could definitely help him with this. When Sirius was preparing to disapparate to James and Lily's house, he suddenly realized what he was about to do. He, Sirius - the great womaniser -, was going to ask James - the clumsy oaf who spent six years to conquer Lily's heart – for love advice. Sirius snorted. Was he actually going to consult James about how to do a proper wedding proposal? What was the world coming to?

End of Update

**A/N So… That sounds like a wedding proposal is coming up! But I'm not telling you if Sirius follows through, though. He could also just cast iObliviate/i on Fabian instead, haha. -Mara**


	51. Just Say Yes

A/N: Lots of fluffy romance coming up in this chapter

**A/N: Lots of fluffy romance coming up in this chapter. Hope you enjoy, reviews are loved!**

**Chapter Fifty-One**

"Please sit up as straight as you can, mr. Williams."

Mary was standing in the St. Mungo's research Hall and about to pour a bit of potion into the mouth of a skinny old-looking wizard. As she was helping the man to get up, Mary still couldn't believe her luck. Only yesterday morning she was still in her ordinary robes, sitting in a classroom at the Healer Program, when Pierce came bursting in to announce he had narrowed down his trainee candidates to four people: Zack, some guy called Goran Brezjnev who Mary didn't know, Ching-Lu, and herself.

Pierce took the four of them to St. Mungo's and explained their main tasks on the way. He told them that they weren't allowed to examine or heal real patients, because they were not actual interns, or at least not yet.

What they _were_ allowed to do, was participating in the research to discover the ingredient (or combination of) in the Imperius-protective potion that was causing the user's skin to turn purple. They had been ordered to brew their own version of the potion and test it on a volunteering patient. The Ministry had even granted them special permission to cast the Imperius-curse on the guinea pigs. Pierce handed out the special St. Mungo's-limegreen robes before dividing them into two groups (Zack & Goran and Mary & Ching-Lu) and stating that the team who had done best at the end of the week would become this years Spell Damage-interns. And so, Mary and Ching-Lu had spent the last two days in a small room, studying and adding ingredients to a large cauldron – thankfully, Ching-Lu was a better potionmaker than Mary – until they had finally created (what they hoped would be) an Imperius-protective potion without the annoying side effect.

Williams was now sitting up straight and eyed the flask Mary was holding with interest. "So that's the potion, then," he said merrily in his wheezy voice.

Mary smiled back weakly. She shot a nervous look at Ching-Lu. "Are you sure this is going to work?"

Her friend nodded confidently, although Mary could detect at least some uncertainty underneath that self-assured posture. "It has to, Mary," she said. "Polygala is used as the "Will Strenghtener", but when overdosed, it can cause a purple tinge to the patient's skin. However, if the polygala is being stabilized with the right amount of calming chamomile – like we did in our potion – it should work out fine."

"_Should_ work out," Mary said doubtfully before looking at Williams. "Sir, are you still willing to volunteer in this experiment?"

The old man sniggered. "My dear, an entire team of healers is currently trying to heal and reduce my wife's immensely swollen bottom. I really don't need to see that. Frankly, I'm just bored and would like to see what you girls came up with." He grinned. "So bring it on."

"Alright then." Mary carefully poured a couple of potion drops into Williams's throat. He smacked his lips a few times before swallowing the potion down. "Not too bad," he said and wiped his mouth.

Mary and Ching-Lu exchanged glances before Mary aimed her wand at Williams. She was about to cast _Imperio_ on him when he suddenly raised a hand to stop her.

"Mr. Williams," Ching-Lu asked, looking worried. "Are you okay?"

Williams suddenly looked very bloated. He was blowing up his cheeks and groaned before he opened his mouth slightly as if he was trying to say something.

Ching-Lu looked frozen on the spot, but Mary quickly put her wand down on the table and bowed so she could look Williams in the eyes. "Please sir," she said, trying to remain calm. "Could you describe what you're feeling exactly so that we can make the pain go away?"

Williams – still groaning - swallowed with difficulty before he nodded. When Mary noticed he was opening his mouth again, she leaned in a little closer to hear what he had to say, but nothing came out. At least no words. Because before Williams could have said or do anything else, he was vomiting all over her.

Mary jumped up, spluttering for air as she felt the content of Wiliams's stomach dripping off her face, down her neck and her hair. The sickening smell was almost unbearable. "I'm so sorry, dear," Williams said, looking embarrassed.

"That's quite alright, sir," Mary replied with a forced smile, trying her best to fight the strong impulse to start throwing up herself, before looking over at Ching-Lu at the other side of the bed, who was giggling madly. "Ching-Lu, would you please…"

"Oh yeah, sorry." Ching-Lu – still laughing – pointed her wand and Mary could literally feel the vomit disappear. She heaved a relieved sigh. "Thanks," she said gratefully and looked at Williams, who was still looking nauseated. She quickly conjured a large bowl out of thin air and put it on his chest, so he could puke into that instead of vomiting all over her face again.

They helplessly stared at their patient for a while, who was now constantly vomiting every three minutes. "So… Now what?" Ching-Lu asked after she gave Williams a bit of water when he had thrown up again.

"Well, at least he's not turning purple," Mary replied. She was leafing through his chart. "Perhaps he's allergic to one of the ingredients we added. We didn't really check that, did we?"

"How's it going in here?"

Pierce was poking his head around the door. His brow furrowed when his eyes fell on the bowl that a miserable-looking Williams was holding with both hands. "Care to explain what happened?" he asked in a stern voice as he was walking in.

"Eh… Well sir, we made a slight chance to the potion ingredients…" Ching-Lu started hesitantly.

"And this is what happened," Mary finished, avoiding Pierce's eyes before she continued bravely: "However, on the bright side…"

"I did not turn turple," Williams managed to say before he had to dive back into the bowl for another round of vomiting.

Pierce's anger disappeared at once and was replaced by surprise. "He didn't?"

"No sir," Ching-Lu – realizing their case wasn't lost yet – replied quickly. "We adjusted the amount of polygala and chamomile and that seemed to work. But now the purpleness has been replaced by this gag-reflex."

"That's not really a problem," Pierce replied as he reached for his wand and pointed it straight at Williams. "_Subvenio_."

The patient got up from hanging over the bowl and leaned back on his pillow, looking relieved. "Ah, that's much better," he smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Pierce answered kindly before he looked over at Mary. "So mr. Williams here really didn't turn purple?"

"No sir," Mary said.

"And he was insensible to the Imperius Curse?"

"Eh well, we hadn't gotten to that point yet."

"Ah." Pierce gave her an understanding nod and looked slightly disappointed. He pointed his wand at Williams once more and said clearly: "_Imperio._"

At first nothing happened, but then Williams was jumping out of his bed and started to dance a little jig right in front of them. Mary and Ching-Lu watched his performance with open mouths and only looked up at Pierce when he finally lifted the curse. Williams stopped dancing at once and looked slightly confused. "How did I get from there to here? And why am I standing?"

Pierce smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "Turns out the potion these ladies brewed could not protect you against the Imperius-Curse, but there is still enough time left. Would you mind coming back tomorrow?"

Mary and Ching-Lu exchanged gloomy glances, both expecting Williams to turn down Pierce's invitation. But to their surprise, he grinned and said enthusiastically: "I'd be delighted to remain part of this essential research."

"Wonderful," Pierce replied. "I also came to tell you that your wife's behind has been successfully reduced to its normal size and that she's waiting for you in the lobby. If you could please step outside for a moment, I will join you in a second and walk you to the exit."

Williams shook his hand and after he'd said goodbye to Mary and Ching-Lu, walked out of the room.

"So," Pierce said the minute Williams had closed the door. "And what did you two learn today?"

"To not test a new potion on a patient unless you're absolutely sure it's safe," they replied almost simultaneously.

Pierce smiled. "That's right, but apart from that, you did not so bad. Now, it has been another long day for both of you, so I suggest you go home. However, I expect to see you back tomorrow morning at eight."

After giving them another look, Pierce turned around to leave the room, but he stopped and looked back when Mary asked: "Sir, did we do worse than the others?"

"Merlin no," the healer replied with twinking eyes. "At least your patient didn't have to suffer any limbs falling off." He shot her a significant look before leaving the room.

Ching-Lu turned to look at Mary. "_Limbs_ falling off?"

Mary giggled. "Suddenly gag-relfex doesn't sound so bad anymore, huh?"

"I'll say," Ching-Lu said, shaking her head. "Anyway, I'm going home. Are you coming along?"

Mary nodded and the two girls headed to the lobby together. After Ching-Lu had made Mary promise that the two of them would meet again at the very same spot the next day, she disapparated with a pop. Mary knew she was supposed to go home as well, but she wasn't really looking forward to it. Being at home, or with Sirius actually, hadn't exactly been pleasant over the past few days.

Ever since Regulus died, Sirius's behaviour had been unpredictable. Mary only managed to cope with his indifferent and reticent behaviour or angry moods, because she knew that he was just trying to deal with his brother's death. So most of the time she just left him alone. And he appreciated that, or she thought he did. The only time Mary had tried to put her foot down was when Sirius wanted to go to Regulus's funeral on his own. She told him that was a ridiculous idea (what she actually meant was that she hated him for shutting her out like this, but she couldn't tell him that) and he flared up at once, yelling that she should get off his back. Mary agreed with him in the end in order to keep the peace, but she had thought of Sirius throughout the day, secretly wishing she could have been at the funeral to support him.

But it had been since the day before yesterday, the day of Regulus's funeral, that Sirius had changed. He was no longer that touchy or reticent, although he refused to tell Mary much about the memorial service. It left her wondering what happened that day to make Sirius transform like this. And although Mary definitely preferred the new Sirius over the old one, she couldn't help but notice he was acting all nervous and twitchy, like he was trying to hide something.

Mary sighed. She couldn't hang out in this lobby all night. She had to face Sirius sooner or later anyway, so why not right now? She took a big breath and disapparated to their home. After she had put her robes on the hall stand, she walked into the living room. She noticed Sirius was lounging on the couch, reading a copy of the Evening Prophet. "Hey," she said casually while simultaneously attempting to decipher his current mood.

"Hi," Sirius replied in a remarkably cheerful voice. He put the newspaper aside and got up from the couch. "How was your day?"

Mary considered this for a moment, remembering stressing over the potion and – not in the last place – being puked over by Willams. "Captivating," she decided eventually. "Yours?"

"I was bored to death. So tell me, what about the Imperius-protective potion?"

"Do you really want to know?"

"Of course," he nodded, and Mary – still pleasantly surprised about Sirius being so cheerful – filled him in on what happened with Williams.

He snorted. "He puked on you?"

"Hu-huh, all over my face."

Sirius burst out laughing. He hadn't been laughing like that since Regulus had tracked them down. Mary was so relieved to see him being happy again that she joined in laughing instead of smacking him for laughing at her, like she normally would have done.

"Hey," Sirius said, still sniggering. "What's that in your hair? Is that a piece of… omelette?"

Mary's hand shot up to her hair. "Iewww! Where?"

He burst out laughing again. "I was just kidding. Merlin Mare, you're so gullible it's cute."

Mary narrowed her eyes. "Ha ha, very funny. You know," she said as she turned around, "I'd like to see your reaction when you get puked over by an eldery man. Let me tell you, that was not… What's this?"

Mary had walked into the kitchen. The room was being lit by several candles and the table had been set with dishes of lobster, salad, bread, a bottle of elf-wine and a vase with the most beautiful red roses Mary had ever seen. "But how… Why?" she asked Sirius who was now standing next to her, smiling as he shot a satisfied look at the table. "I thought it was about time I made _you_ dinner instead of the other way around."

Mary looked stunned. "Okay, who are you and what have you done to my boyfriend?"

Sirius wasn't insulted. On the contrary, he looked merely amused when he walked up behind her to put his hands on her hips and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "I figured you deserve a nice dinner, that's all."

Mary turned around and she could see that Sirius expected her to kiss him, but instead she lifted his chin firmly with her hand so she could look him straight in the eye. "Are you sure no one has used Imperius on you?"

Sirius chuckled before answering more seriously: "Look, I'm aware that the last weeks haven't been easy for us. With Regulus's death and all…"

"I know, but-"

"-And because you put up with me and my mood swings," Sirius continued undisturbed, "You deserve a big thank you. So tonight, you are my little princess and I'm going to pamper you all the way through. Please take a seat."

Mary obeyed and sat down, still feeling bemused. Was this the same moody guy from last week who had yelled at her for the most random things? She took a sip of wine as she watched Sirius filling her plate with lobster and salad. "This looks great."

He smiled before putting the plate down in front of her. "And it tastes good, too. Dig in."

Mary took a bite of lobster. And she had to admit: it was absolutely delicious. "Hmm," she said. "It's wonderful. Did you make this?"

"Yes."

"But… You cannot cook," she said, lifting her eyebrows in surprise.

Sirius laughed. "I can't bake an omelette, true enough. Kreacher did all that stuff when I was younger, but lobster was the one dish my mother could make herself. And she passed on that… recipe to me and Regulus." He shrugged. "I never expected to be making it myself, but there you go. Anyway, you should try the lobster with this sauce. Here."

Sirius fed her his fork of lobster and Mary gave him a fork of her salad in return. In the end, they were feeding their plates of lobster, salad and bread to each other. When they had finished eating the main dish, Sirius casually waved his wand and the plate of lobster left-overs got replaced by one giant bowl filled with different balls of ice cream. "Wow…" Mary said, staring at the bowl in awe. "That's a lot of icecream."

Sirius grinned. "It's new: Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Icecream. I thought it might be fun to try out."

Mary smiled and peered into the bowl. She prodded a green ball of icecream with interest. "Do you think this might be pistachio?"

"There's only one way to find out, right?"

Mary took a spoon full of the green icecream. She pulled a face. "Grass."

Sirius laughed. "How about this one?" He fed her a bit of a soft pink colored ball. "Better?"

Mary closed her eyes while savoring the taste. "Raspberry," she smiled.

They amused themselves by feeding the ice cream to each other for another while, but after they had tried all the tastes they could muster (Sirius got onion, ketchup, cherry, cinnamon and beef and Mary got caramel, soap, orange, curry and liquorice), Sirius waved his wand again to clean up the mess. After he transported the dishes over to the sink where they started to clean themselves, he walked back to Mary and pulled her up from her seat. Before she got the chance to say anything at all, he lifted her up in his arms and started to carry her over to the back door. Mary laughed. "Sirius, what are you doing?"

He grinned back before opening the door and carrying her outside. "Princesses are not allowed to walk, didn't you know?"

"What? But that is just ridicu…"

Mary stopped talking mid-sentence when she noticed Sirius was carrying her to the roof terrace. And he wasn't just walking on the ground. It seemed like he was walking on a red carpet of… were that rose petals? Mary was completely flabbergasted as she admired the roof terrace, where over a hundred tiny candles were floating through the air, shimmering slightly in the soft evening breeze. She felt a bit dazed and buried her face in Sirius's neck – who kept on walking as if nothing extraordinary was happening –, inhaling his scent and aftershave with every breath she took. Surely this was a bit too much spectacle for a simple making up-dinner? What was going on?

Her mind shot back into gear when Sirius put her down in the middle of the roof terrace. They were surrounded by several dark red fluffy pillows and Mary spotted an ice bucket with a bottle of champagne and two glasses standing on a little table. She shot Sirius a perplexed look and was about to ask him what was going on when he softly put a finger on her lips. "Please… I'd like to say a few things and I need you to not interrupt me. Can you do that?"

Mary wasn't sure if she could have said anything if she had to, so she just nodded slowly, still feeling bemused and hardly aware of the rose petals among their feet or the candles floating around in the air. All she could see was Sirius, who was no longer looking confident, but seemed to be struggling to find the right words. And was that a hint of insecurity in his eyes?

Sirius took a big breath before reaching for both her hands. "Like I said before, the last weeks haven't been easy for us, but I've acted like a real jerk and Regulus's death is no excuse for how I treated you."

Mary opened her mouth to contradict him, but he noticed this and quickly continued: "But you stuck by me and I realize – now more than ever – that this means the world to me. You know, somewhere deep down inside there's still that little boy that's waiting, perhaps even hoping, to be rejected. But lately I've come to realize that-" He paused to smile and squeeze her hand softly "-You really _are_ not going anywhere. And if last week has taught me anything, it's that you shouldn't waste time. You only live once…"

He frowned and Mary got the distinct impression that he hadn't exactly prepared this speech but was rather coming up with the words spontaneously. "I mean," Sirius continued. "Look at Regulus. He was only eighteen years old and what did he achieve in his miserable little life? Life's too short to be standing still. I don't want to be walking this road on my own anymore. You deserve… No, _we_ deserve to spend the good and bad times together, and with that I mean really together. Which is why…"

Sirius let go of Mary's hand, reached in his pocket and got out a little square box, made of black velvet. She stared at the box with wide eyes and an open mouth. When she watched how he was kneeling down on one knee, she clasped her free hand to her mouth.

Sirius, keeping the opened jewelry box in one hand and her hand in the other, smiled up at her. "Sweet, _sweet_ Mary, will you marry me?"

Mary – still holding her hand in front of her mouth – stared at him. She could hardly believe her ears. Was this really happening? Was he actually _proposing_ to her? She half-expected it all to be one big dream. In fact, she wouldn't be surprised if she was forced to wake up by Sirius nudging her (or worse: her alarm clock) any time soon. But this didn't seem to occur. Instead, he was still holding up that little black box with the shiny ring and shooting her an expectant look. Mary suddenly became aware of the fact that her continuous silence could be giving Sirius the wrong idea, so she immediately started to nod feverishly, making clear that she was _more_ than willing to become mrs. Black.

Sirius grinned, his old confidence already restored. "You know, officially you are supposed to say "yes" or "I want to" or something along those lines."

Mary shot him a bemused look before she understood what he was talking about and cried: "Yes, yes, of course I will!"

Sirius smiled and slowly put the shiny ring on the ring finger of her hand before getting up. Mary didn't want to waste any time and practically jumped on top of him to give him the closest hug she could muster. Sirius laughed and hugged her back. "I love you so much," Mary whispered in his ear before kissing him passionately.

"I love you too," he said softly when they broke apart. "Do you like the ring?"

She admired the open-sided platinum ring with one shiny diamond in the middle. "Like? I _love_ it."

Sirius laughed. "Prongs thought it was a little too modern for his taste."

"James knew about this?"

"Yeah, I actually had to ask him how to do a proper wedding proposal."

Mary arched an eyebrow. "You asked _James_ for love advice?"

Sirius chuckled. "I know. It's like an altered universe, isn't it?"

"You can say that again," she mumbled, watching how her ring was twinkling in the candlelight. "So… What did James say?"

"He was more confident about this than I was, to be honest. But we did this little mind game that is supposed to take all your doubts away and that worked out pretty well."

"What kind of game?"

Sirius shrugged. "Oh, you know: that game where someone asks you random and big questions at will and you have to answer them instinctively to realize what you really want."

Mary choked on her champagne. "You're kidding!"

Sirius shot her a curious look. "What, you know that game?"

Mary looked back at him, realizing that Lily must have told James all about her little breakdown right before the wedding. She remembered the way she fired insignificant and essential questions at her best friend in that snowy graveyard, trying to find out if James really was the love of Lily's life. Mary suddenly knew with one hundred per cent certainty that she would never need a quiz like that to know if she and Sirius were meant to be together. In fact, there was no single hair on her head that did _not_ want to marry him. But she'd rather die than ever telling him that.

So instead, she simply smiled up at him and – as she laced her fingers through his – replied casually: "I might have heard of it."

End of Update

**A/N: So… He **_**did**_** ask her. And more importantly: she said yes! They're engaged now… Let me know what you think! Thanks –Mara.**


	52. A Night To Remember

A/N: Thanks for all the comments on the last chapter

**A/N: Thanks for all the comments on the last chapter. I'm glad you all approve of Sirius and Mary getting engaged. And in this update, Lily has some exciting news. And I think you can all guess what that means! Enjoy and please don't forget to leave a review when you drop by. Thanks! –Mara**

**Chapter Fifty-Two**

Over the next two months, the Order didn't have much to do. Even their presumed spy seemed to have suspended his duties for the time being. Although admittedly, that was probably because Moody used every Order meeting to claim that he was making progress on tracking down the traitor. Whether this development was actually true or not, the spy _did_ seem to deem Moody's threat worthy enough to remain invisible, at least for now.

Most things happening these days were happy. There was Sirius and Mary's engagement that had taken many people by surprise, but everyone was pleased to hear that they were taking their relationship to the next level. _Almost_ everyone, with the exception of Sirius's parents. They sent them an owl the morning after Sirius and Mary had announced their engagement; a death threat which was not only directed at Mary, but Sirius as well. This didn't seem to impress him a lot, though. He simply shrugged and said he didn't understand why his parents were bothering to threaten them at all since their only son was already dead, before casting _Incendio_ on the letter and getting back to reading the Daily Prophet like nothing had happened.

Meanwhile, Sirius and James had become trainees at the Auror Office at the Ministry. They were now working for the Auror Ray Matthews, a broad-shouldered and tall man with wild white hair, amber-colored cat-like eyes and more scars in his face than Moody. He looked quite intimidating, but according to Moody and Zabini, Matthews was a good man and a skilled teacher.

Mary and her teammate Ching-Lu had won the challenge with their classmates and were now the official interns at the Spell Damage-department. Pierce was still acting as strict as ever, although he had asked them over for dinner a few weeks ago and they had learnt that outside the walls of St.Mungo's, thier mentor was actually a very nice man with a dry sense of humor.

And last but not least, Frank and Alice Longbottom had announced they were expecting a child. They would have liked to keep the pregnancy a secret until they had passed the critical three months border, but when Moody started to suspect that they were hiding something from the Order and threatened to set up a personal investigation, Alice decided it was better to share the happy news instead.

So despite the constant threat of Voldemort and his Death Eaters, the end of the year 1979 looked very promising. On a snowy December night, Mary was sitting behind her desk to recite some spells she had learned at work. She had scribbled down the incantations on some parchment and was trying to use them correctly. Easier said than done, because her cat Coco was lying stretched out on top of her notes and there wasn't anyone to practice the spells on. Sirius was at James' with Remus, Peter, Frank, Fabian and Gideon and Lily was off visiting her parents. The only other person in the room was Brice – who was studying a complicated-looking cipher – and Mary seriously doubted her friend would be willing to let Mary use her to practise a fever dimishing spell.

She sighed, put her wand down and took a sip of her juice before reaching out to stroke Coco. The cat purred contently at her touch and turned on its back, almost knocking a candlestick over in the process. Mary put the stick aside and tickled Coco's belly. Her engagement ring was twinkling in the candlelight and she smiled. She continued to move her ring finger around so the ring kept sparkling until she heard someone heave an impatient sigh. Mary looked up and noticed that Brice was watching her. "That ring isn't going to disappear when you're not admiring it every five minutes, you know."

Mary grinned foolishly. "I'm sorry, but I'm still having trouble to believe it."

Brice magically refilled her glass with Firewhiskey and smiled. "You're not the only one. Sirius Black getting married… Who would have thought?"

"Not me," Mary said, fiddling with her engagement ring. She desisted doing this at once when she saw her friend's amused look. "Sorry," she muttered. "I just can't help thinking that this is all a dream and I'm about to wake up."

Brice lifted an eyebrow. "A dream that's lasted over two months?"

"I see your point."

"I can see where you're coming from, though," Brice said thoughtfully. "Sirius isn't exactly the type of guy you'd expect to get married."

"Yeah, maybe… But I think Regulus's death..."

Brice shrugged. "Whether it was the death of his brother or not, I think I owe you an apology."

"What are you talking about?"

Brice took a sip of whiskey. "You remember that talk we and Lily had the day you and Sirius moved in together? When I said that he would never choose you over his friends?"

"Yes," Mary replied as she picked up Coco and put the cat down on her lap.

"Well…" Her friend paused and looked like she was choosing her words carefully. "I never expected Sirius to become this attached to a girl. That has got something to do with me, because I dated him in our fifth year when he was everything _but_ considerate with a girl's feelings. I know that it's different with you, but I guess I've always been bummed that I haven't been _that_ girl to him."

"But-"

"-Now don't get me wrong: you guys belong together and I want to be with Remus. In fact, I cannot picture myself with any other guy, but I don't know… I suppose that deep down inside, I would have liked to be that girl who manages to tame the infamous womaniser Sirius Black."

Mary tickled Coco behind the ears. "You're forgetting that Sirius has grown up a lot during that final year at Hogwarts. If I would have gone out with him in our sixth year – and remember: back then I would have preferred pickling rat brains over a date with Sirius Black -, I'm sure he would have treated me exactly the same way." She snorted. "And all his other 315 conquests."

Brice burst out laughing. "Lordy, you're still remembering that conversation?"

Mary smiled. "How could I forget? That was the first time I really stared into his eyes. I got lost in them at once. Oh those eyes…" She sighed dreamily. "You could seriously drown by looking into those pools of grey, did you know that?"

Brice smiled. "Yeah, the guy has a mesmerizing set of eyes, I give you that."

They looked up when they heard a soft knock on the door. Mary shot her a puzzled look and put Coco down on the floor. "Who could that be?"

Brice frowned. "The guys are all at James's place and Lily is visiting her parents. I have no idea… Better be prepared, I say."

They picked up their wands and quietly approached the front door. Brice aimed her wand at the doorway and Mary cast _Alohomora_ on it, so that her other could immediately cast a jinx if their guest turned out to be an enemy. The door swung open and their mystery guest got revealed, but it wasn't a Death Eater. It was Lily. "Hi," thier redheaded friend said quietly before frowning at the hostile welcoming committee. "What are you doing?"

"Security reasons," Brice muttered and Mary pulled Lily inside so she could close and magically seal the door behind them. When she walked back into the room, Lily had sat down across Brice. She was stroking Coco, who had jumped back on top of the desk.

"What do you want to drink, Lil?" Mary asked.

"I've got Firewhiskey," Brice suggested, holding up the bottle.

"Er... I prefer something non-alcoholic, if that's okay," Lily replied.

"How about some apple juice?"

"Yeah, sure. Thanks."

Mary had only just put down a glass of apple juice in front of Lily and sat down herself when Brice asked: "So why are you here, Lil? I thought you were staying over at your parents house tonight."

"I was, but something happened," Lily said. "And I just had to come here to eh… find out for sure."

Mary and Brice shot Lily a curious look, expecting her to clarify what she was talking about. When she didn't say anything else, the others exchanged confused glances before Brice asked: "What happened?"

Lily didn't reply immediately and stared at the table for a moment. Mary noticed that her friend was fiddling with her wedding ring and she couldn't help but smile and shoot another look at her engagement ring. Her mind got pulled back to the present when Lily finally reached down to get something from her bag. She got back up and carefully placed a plastic and elongated object on the table.

Brice stared at it, looking clueless. "What in Merlin's name is that?"

Mary _did_ know what the object was, but she wasn't any less surprised than Brice. "A pregnancy test?"

Lily nodded, still reticent, and a wide eyed Brice picked up the pregnancy test and started to study it closely. "This…" she said eventually with an incredulous look on her face. "Is what Muggles use to check whether they're pregnant or not?"

"This is a test you can do on your own, but you can also visit a doctor and let him determine the pregnancy for you," Mary explained before shooting a careful look at Lily. "Lil, are you sure that…?"

Her best friend sighed and opened a small hole on the other side of the pregnancy test to reveal a small piece of paper with two bright pink lines. "See?" she said quietly.

Mary rubbed her nose. "Oh."

"Yes, but that's why I came to see you. I mean, these tests… They can be inaccurate, right?"

Lily sounded hopeful, but Mary shrugged and said: "Technically, yes… But how are you feeling?"

"Ehm… I should have gotten my period by now and I sometimes feel nauseated in the morning."

Mary nodded. "Alright… And have you been feverish lately? Or experienced any dizziness?"

"Yes, but haven't you?"

"Not in combination with your other symptoms," Mary replied calmly. "It looks like you're pregnant to me, but I think you should schedule an appointment with a Healer at the St.Mungo's Obstretics Department as soon as possible."

"But isn't there anything you can do?" Lily pleaded.

Mary shot her a look. "I can do a magical pregnancy test right here if you like, but that is not my area of expertise, so I still advise you to consult-"

"-Oh Mare, stop being a Healer for a minute and just be my friend, will you?" Lily snapped before adding: "Sorry, I didn't mean to…"

"That's okay," Mary smiled before she got up and walked into the kitchen to prepare the test. After she had opened one of the kitchen cabinets to grab some valerian roots, oatstaw, red raspberry leafs and rose hips and started to mix the ingredients in a small bowl, she heard Brice ask: "Why are you so afraid of being pregnant?"

"I'm only twenty years old, Brice. I consider myself rather young to become a mother," Lily said quietly, looking down at Coco who was nestling on her lap.

"My mum was twenty when she had me," Mary called from the kitchen. "And she never regretted becoming a parent at that age."

"Hmmm," Lily replied thoughtfully and focused on stroking a now loudly purring Coco.

Mary returned to the room with a bowl of greenish pulp. She put her chair down in front of Lily, who arched her eyebrows when she looked at the odd-looking mixture in the bowl. "I should have known not to be asking you for a potion."

Mary laughed. "It's not a potion, you daft cow! It's an ointment." When her friend's sceptical expression didn't soften, she rolled her eyes. "For your information: according to Pierce, my salves are excellent."

"Alright then," Lily said before putting Coco back onto the table. "What are you going to do?"

"I'll rub this ointment onto the inside of your wrist, cast a pregnancy detecting spell on it and wait for five minutes. And then we shall know."

Lily nodded. "Okay, let's do it." She handed out her arm, and after Mary had put some of the ointment on it, she reached for her wand to cast _Gravitocernus_ on Lily's wrist. The pulp lit up to a bright orange for a moment before turning back to its original green.

"Wow, it felt very hot for a second. And now?"

"Now we wait," Mary said as she tried to keep Lily's wrist level. "Just keep it in this position."

Brice had been watching the process closely. "So Lily, haven't you and James been careful enough?" she asked, shooting her a curious look.

Lily shrugged. "Most of the time we are, but sometimes we just kind of… You know?"

Mary nodded. "But if you turned out to be pregnant… Honestly, that shouldn't be so bad, right? I mean, you're a married woman. Now if _I_ got pregnant-"

"-You're engaged! You're practically married."

Mary shot an amused look at Brice and said: "Fine. If _Brice_ got pregnant, now that could get a little problematic."

Lily giggled madly. "I'm just imagining Remus's face when he finds out Brice is carrying his child."

Brice chuckled. "I'd say he'll be fleeing the building faster than a Nimbus 1500 at top speed. How do you think James will take it?"

Lily's smile faded quickly. "I don't know… Is it time yet?"

"Almost," Mary said.

"What wil happen after those five minutes?"

"I will remove the ointment and if you're not pregnant: there's nothing to see. However, if you _are_, the salve will have left a blue mark on your wrist."

Lily shot her a look. "And that means what, that I'm going to have a boy?"

Mary smiled. "This test doesn't determine the sex of the baby. It's merely a confirmation of the pregnancy. But we'll find out soon enough. It is time."

She grabbed a table cloth and – as Brice leaned in a little closer - gently wiped off the ointment on Lily's wrist. Nothing but a light blue mark remained behind. Mary looked up and met Lily's shocked gaze. "I guess that means you're pregnant. Congratulations."

Mary hugged her friend close and smiled when she whispered into her ear: "What am I going to do? What is James going to say?"

Mary grinned. "That's what we're about to find out. I think we should pay the guys a little visit."

Lily bit her lip. "You really think so?"

Brice nodded after she had also hugged Lily. "He has the right to know and celebrate this with you."

"Celebrate?" Lily said, rolling her eyes. "Okay, let's apparate to our hallway. Wait, are pregnant women allowed to apparate?"

"They are," Mary replied with twinkling eyes. "But it'll be rather disastrous if you splinch yourself. So you better keep those three D's in mind, Lil."

Lily shot her the infamous glare that used to scare James out of his wits before she disapparated with a loud pop. Mary and Brice grinned at each other before they followed suit. They apparated right behind Lily in the hallway and they could hear loud male voices and dance music come out of the living room. "What are they doing in there anyway?" Brice whispered curiously.

"No need to whisper, I should think," Lily replied chuckling before adding: "And I have no idea, but let's find out."

She opened the door and Mary and Brice walked in behind her. The three of them ran in on a scene they did not expect. The guys – all in different stages of undressing - were sitting at a large table and seemed to be playing a game of poker. Several bottles of butterbeer, mead and Firewhiskey were standing on the messy table. None of the guys had noticed that the girls standing in the room who were watching them with open mouths. Apparently Frank had lost the last game, because James and Gideon were encouraging him to pull off his pants. "Alright, alright! I'll do it," Frank laughed and he was about to pull them off when his eyes fell on the girls. "Oh. Hello!"

The guys looked around as one and fel silent. For a few seconds, all that could be heard was the loud music coming from the stereo, until Peter and Gideon quickly reached for their shirts, whereas Sirius and James looked merely surprised but didn't bother to put on any of their missing clothes.

Brice was cackling madly and leaned in closer to Mary and Lily. "_This_ is what we've been mssing out on? Merlin's Beard, we should have dropped by ages ago!"

Mary giggled, but Lily decided that she shouldn't waste any time. "James, do you have a moment?"

James frowned at her. "What, now?"

"Yes, it's urgent."

James got up at once, momentarily forgetting that he was wearing just a shirt and no pants or socks. "Who died?"

"No one," Lily said quickly. "But I really need to speak with you. In private."

"Oh, alright," James said, looking confused as he got up and said: "You lads carry on without me."

"Don't forget these!" a grinning Remus called before chucking James's pants at him.

After James and Lily had left the room, Brice pulled a slightly hesitant Mary along to the remaining half-naked guys at the table and said cheerfully: "So you were playing strip poker? Shouldn't you play that game with men _and_ women?"

"Yup," Frank replied cheerfully. "That said, you girls wanna join in?"

"Eh…" a protesting Remus started, but Brice laughed as she sat down in James's seat. "Nah, I don't really know the game, but I'd like to watch."

Frank winked at her and started to hand out the cards while Mary walked over to a spare seat next to Sirius and Peter. She noticed that Sirius was wearing nothing more than his boxers and socks and lifted an eyebrow. "Bad luck?"

"Bad cards," he replied darkly.

"Looks like I dropped by just in time, then."

Sirius grinned and reached for her hand to pull her down. "That depends on how you look at it, doesn't it?"

Mary felt herself go red and avoided his eyes as she helped herself to a Butterbeer. Peter had been watching her for a while and asked: "Do you know how to play poker, Mary?"

She shook her head and sipped her butterbeer. "Not really."

"Because I really wouldn't mind seeing you lose some clothing," he added cheekily.

Mary was so stunned – did Peter actually just say that? – that she choked on her drink and Sirius chucked a couple of poker chips at Peter's head. "Shut up, Wormtail." He pulled Mary on his lap and put his arms around her possessively. "I will not tolerate you talking to my future wife like this."

Mary laughed and gave him a kiss before she looked over at Peter. "Seriously Pete, what has gotten into you?"

Peter shrugged and said nothing as he started to arrange his cards. But when Mary looked up, she met Fabian's eyes; he winked at her and mouthed "Firewhiskey". Mary giggled. Sirius shot her a curious look, but she was now overhearing Gideon asking Brice about the reason for them dropping by.

"It's like Lily said," Brice was saying. "She urgently needed to talk to James."

"Urgent enough to disturb our weekly poker night?" Gideon asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Didn't I just say that?" she countered indignantly.

"Relax Brice," Remus intervened calmly as he reached for her hand. "All Gideon is saying that we would like to know what this is all about."

Brice smiled at him. "Well, that's something between the two of them, isn't it?"

"I suppose so," Remus said. "But I mean, it's not like she's pregnant or anything."

Mary stiffened in her seat. Remus had just interpreted the situation correctly and didn't even seem to realize it. She shifted uncomfortably and was terrified Brice would give away Lily's secret, but her friend didn't seem to be the least intimidated by her boyfriend's curious stare. "No," she lied with a serene expression on her face. "Now can we just go back to the game? I'd like to see what all the fuss is about."

Remus shrugged and the other guys picked up their cards to continue the game. Mary heaved a relieved sigh, but then she noticed that Sirius hadn't arranged his cards, but was staring at her. She had a slight suspicion that he had been doing this for a while _and_ she was sitting on his lap, so he must have felt her stiffen when Remus mentioned the pregnancy. Mary finally dared to look up and in that one second that they were looking at each other, his suspicions seemed to be confirmed. He looked utterly perplexed and Mary silently begged him to remain quiet. A dazed-looking Sirius nodded and picked up his cards, but he didn't even seem to realize that he was holding a Full House in his hands.

Luckily for him, that was the moment that James and Lily entered the room. Mary noticed that her eyes were red; it was obvious that she had been crying. Mary shot her friend a worried look; did this mean that James didn't want the baby? Lily quickly soothed her concern by smiling and cocking her head over at James. When Mary looked at him, she couldn't help but smile. James was looking just as happy as he had been on his wedding day; he was wearing that same blissful grin like he could not believe his luck.

Lily softly squeezed his hand and asked: "Do you want to… Or shall I?"

James grinned at her before looking at the others. His gaze seemed to linger on Sirius for a moment, as if he guessed that his best mate already knew what he was going to say. James smiled when he noticed that Sirius was giving him a tiny wink. He cleared his throat and said: "We… Merlin, I'm so happy I can hardly find the words to describe what I'm feeling right now. Lily just told me that eh… That we're expecting a eh-"

"I'm pregnant!" Lily finished their announcement for him.

For a moment, nobody moved at all. Most of the guys stared at Lily with their mouths hanging wide open, until Frank jumped up and pulled James into a tight embrace while he boomed: "James is going to be a dad! James is going to be a dad!" Everyone stood up after this and congratulated the expecting couple. When Mary was hugging James, she heard an amused Remus accusing Brice of lying to him.

"Well, I didn't have much choice, now did I?" she replied with a guilty expression on her face.

"I know, I understand," Remus chuckled and he kissed her on the forehead. "I just had no idea I was spoiling Lily's big news."

Mary witnessed them and the others talking animatedly with a broad smile on her face. There was no doubt about it: this was a series of fortunate events. No Order-disappearances or deaths, her and Sirius's engagement, their promising-looking careers, Alice's pregnancy and now James and Lily who were also expecting their first child. It was making her remember their carefree years at Hogwarts. Back then, they had been blissfully oblivious to all the terrors of their current world. And now (with the engagement and pregnancies) it was quite hard to think about the dangers of the war. For one blessed moment on this cold Winter night, Voldemort and his Death Eaters seemed like a million miles away.

End of Update


	53. Winchelsey

Chapter Fifty-Three

**Chapter Fifty-Three**

The year of 1979 did have a peaceful ending. Mary and Sirius spent Christmas with Mary's parents and they had a lovely time, not in the least place because aunt Muriel and uncle Carl had decided to spend the holidays somewhere else. Mary discovered that Sirius had been a real gentleman about the engagement: he had visited Mr. Woods the night prior to his proposal and officially asked her father's permission. When Mary asked him why, he explained that since there were so many traditions in her family, he reckoned that asking for her hand in marriage would be no exception. And indeed, Mr. Woods had appreciated Sirius for coming to him first, but according to Mary, it was a bit awkward. She had never heard about any family traditions concerning dating before and assumed this was simply her father's way to keep at least some control in her life, now that she had chosen to live in "that other" world.

Meanwhile, Jenna simply couldn't stop staring at Mary's engagement ring. She was absolutely thrilled that Sirius and Mary were getting married and had already persuaded her to be one of the bridemaids, simply by whining about it all the time. When Mary couldn't take any more of Jenna's nagging, she gave in and named her little sister a bridesmaid (which she would have done anyway).

Mr. Woods was absolutely thrilled about the engagement. Mary already knew that he and Sirius got along well and the engagement didn't change that. She had even spotted her father talking to his colleagues on Christmas Eve; he was positively boasting about his perfect son-in-law. Mrs. Woods was also happy for them, but Mary sensed that her mother was also fearing that she might have lost her daughter for good. One night, when the two of them were preparing dinner together, Mrs. Woods even said that it seemed only yesterday when Mary had gone to Hogwarts for the first time. "You really are all grown up now," she whispered emotionally before pulling Mary into a close hug.

But even though her mother felt that Mary had grown up too quickly for her liking, she _was_ looking forward to organizing the wedding. She had even given Mary a large pile of Muggle bridal magazines with features on wedding gowns and reports on magnificent locations. It so happened that these magazines came in handy at tedious Order meetings. It had been months since anything exciting had happened. These days, the meetings were mostly about speculating what Voldemort could be up to and – sporadically - going on exploring missions.

Tonight, James, Fabian, Gideon, Peter and Zabini had gone to Canterbury to investigate a dilapidated house that was being used by Death Eaters to store a certain object. The Order didn't exactly know what it was, but it seemed to be of great importance, because there were always two (or more) Death Eaters present to keep an eye on the place.

Everyone else was at the Headquarters to study maps and books in order to discover more about the magical side of Canterbury and the possible connection to Voldemort. Remus was the only absent member; he was hiding out because of the full moon. Brice was assisting Sirius in deciphering a letter in an ancient writing. Dumbledore, Moody, Marlene, Edgar, Hagrid and Alice were studying Canterbury maps and Mary and Lily were taking a look at books on the magical history in that region. Or at least, _Mary_ was reading a book called _The Magical truth of the Anglican Church_. Lily on the other other hand appeared to be studying _Canterbury Magic through the Ages: 1400-1800_, but was secretly leafing through a magazine on idyllic wedding locations. "Pssst Mare," she whispered.

Mary looked up from reading a paragraph on the magical background of the 16th century Archbishop Edmund Grindal. "What?"

"Look, if you rent this Scottish country house in May or June, the staff will be included for free!"

Mary shot Lily an incredulous look. "In case you hadn't noticed, my entire family are Muggles so Apparation clearly is not an option. I cannot possibly expect them to travel all the way to-" She shot a look at the magazine, "-Aberdeen. Merlin's Beard Lil, do you even know how far up north that is?"

"Hmm good point," her friend replied. She flipped a few pages and Mary was about to get back to her book when Lily gasped. "Look at this…"

Mary leaned in to take a closer look and she had to admit: that little and idyllic-looking 15th century chapel on the page looked absolutely amazing. Mary suddenly had a vivid vision of her and Sirius coming down those steps together while they were smiling and beaming at their family and friends; she could totally picture them getting married in a chapel like that.

"It's perfect, isn't it?" Lily asked, correctly interpreting Mary's expression.

"It's… Not bad," she replied, trying to sound a little indifferent.

"Not bad? Come off it! This is a _dream_ location. And it's in Kent, go figure! Your family could crawl back home after the ceremony if they had to."

Mary looked at Lily and smiled. "Well, I suppose it looks quite nice. But I need to discuss it with Sirius first."

"Of course," Lily beamed. "But he'll love it too and-"

_Clunk, clunk, clunk_.

Lily startled when she heard Moody walking towards their side of the room. They could also hear his hoarse voice growing louder as he said: "That certainly could be possible, Albus, but in order to be sure, we need to know who was in charge around 1767."

Lily shot an alarmed look at Mary and tried to pull the magazine out of the book, but she was a second too late. Moody had already picked up the book, causing the magazine to fall out and land on the floor with a dull thud, right in front of Moody's feet. He bent down to grab it and frowned when his eyes (both of them) looked at the article. "What's this?" he grunted. "'Let's do it _Kent Style_'? What has that supposed to mean?"

"Eh…" Lily had gone as bright red as the sweater she was wearing and Mary was biting her lip to prevent herself from bursting out laughing. There was something terribly funny about hearing Moody say: "Let's do it Kent Style". The entire room had gone quiet and Mary could feel they were being watched. When she looked up and met Sirius's eyes, she smiled but he did not return it. In fact, the look he was shooting her was rather reproachful.

"Were you reading this?" Moody asked Lily as he threw the magazine back onto the table.

"Yes," she replied with a guilty look on her face.

"I assume you must have had a _very_ good reason to do so, young lady."

"Well actually," Lily started timidly, but she got interrupted by Mary who remembered her mother showing her a picture of the Canterbury Cathedral. "There's a feature on the biggest cathedrals in that area and we were studying it for clues," she said quickly while flicking through the magazine until she had found the right page and held it up. "See?"

Moody shot her a piercing look, but Mary stared back confidently without blinking. She had recently discovered that it's much easier to look at Moody when you're staring at the very spot between his normal and magical eye. After a tense moment of silence, Moody grunted, picked up Lily's book and lumped back to his seat at the other side of the room.

"Thanks," Lily mouthed, looking relieved and shooting her a grateful look. Mary smiled at Lily when she suddenly realized that Dumbledore was standing next to them. He took a closer look at the article. "A magnificent cathedral with an impressive history that is also very suitable for baptisms and funerals. Or weddings," he added as an afterthought.

Mary and Lily looked up apprehensively, but Dumbledore did not look angry. On the contrary, he was smiling at them with twinkling eyes. "Of course, were you looking for a more idyllic place in Kent… I happen to know the priest of that very chapel and could arrange a nice discount."

He winked at Mary and this time, she was the one who turned red. How in Merlin's name did Dumbledore know that they had been talking about that particular chapel? How was it that he always seemed to know everything? Mary opened her mouth to explain that they were just looking around, but before she could have said anything, they heard a loud crack: Zabini had just apparated in the middle of the room.

Something seemed to be terribly wrong. Zabini was bleeding badly and only managed to stay up for a few seconds before he collapsed on the floor. Everyone got up fro their seat, but it was Edgar who got there first. He rolled an unconscious Zabini onto his back to examine him. When Edgar pulled back part of Zabini's robes, everyone gasped. His injuries looked very serious. Dumbledore crouched down on the other side of Zabini and shot Edgar a concerned look. "Do you think you can get him to regain consiousness?"

Edgar wiped his brow. "Not sure, but we have to try. Mary, could you help us with this?"

Mary stepped up and kneeled down next to him. "What do you need me to do?"

Edgar reached for his wand and ushered her to do the same. "Zabini is bleeding internally into his abdomen. If we can stop the bleeding, he might come around before we have to transport him to St.Mungo's. But mind you, all three of us need to cast the spell at exactly the same time or it will lose its effect."

"Alright," Mary nodded before also pointing her wand at Zabini's stomach. She could feel several pairs of eyes on her and felt very nervous. She had never healed someone with these kind of serious injuries in public before. What if she made a mistake and Zabini would die right in this room? Would she be held responsible for that? But before Mary had more time to think about the possible consequences, Edgar had started to count down and she was going to have to focus.

"Three, two, one, go!" Edgar said.

He, Dumbledore and Mary cast the spell at the same time. The candlelit room was suddenly bading in a bright violet light by the flash that erupted from the three wands. The charm seemed to lift up Zabini for a brief moment before he softly came back down on the floor. Edgar signalled Mary and Dumbledore to break off the spell and they lifted their wands slowly. A few seconds later, Edgar did the same thing.

The violet light disappeared at once. Zabini remained motionless for another moment until his eyes shot open. He was breathing heavily and immediately put a hand on his abdomen, groaning. Mary shot a worried look at Edgar. "Did it go wrong?"

Edgar shook his head. "We merely stopped the bleeding, we didn't cure him. Sean, can you hear me?"

Zabini groaned. "Water."

Dumbledore conjured a goblet out of nowhere and gently poured the water into Zabini's mouth, who was having trouble swallowing it down. Most of the water that entered his mouth gushed back out, drenching his already soaked robes even more. "They… caught us," Zabini panted before attempting to sit up straight. Edgar pushed him back gently. "You need to stay down," he said gently.

Zabini nodded before looking back at Dumbledore. "They took… off guard, stunned us all… Got blindfolded... and transported into… into the house." Zabini spoke as quickly as possible with a jolting voice, gasping for air occasionally.

"Easy Sean, take your time." Dumbledore spoke calmly, but he was looking very concerned.

"Tortured.. us... I could…. Dis-disappar-ate… But others.. badly hurt…" Zabini stammered with difficulty until he suddenly stopped talking at all. His breathing faltered quickly and his eyes started to roll back in his head. Mary instantly realized they would lose him within minutes if he didn't get transported to St.Mungo's right away. She looked up at Edgar in alarm and noticed that he was thinking the same thing.

"That's enough, Albus," Edgar said abruptly. "He needs to go to the hospital right now or he'll be too weak to survive the journey."

Dumbledore nodded, but when he and Edgar attempted to heave Zabini onto their shoulders, he suddenly regained consciousness, noticed Moody was already organizing several people to apparate to Canterbury, and seized Dumbledore's arm. "You… go too.. Not just Death… Eaters, also Vol-demort…"

Edgar and Dumbledore exchanged glances before putting Zabini back down. They started to discuss who would be going to St.Mungo's with Zabini instead of Dumbledore, but Mary got momentarily distracted when she looked over her shoulder at Moody's group of volunteers. She wasn't the least surprised when she noticed that Sirius was one of them, looking pale and stressed but with a determined look in his grey eyes. Mary saw that he had put an arm around Lily, who – besides crying – was arguing with Frank.

"You cannot go," Frank was saying. "You're pregnant, it's way too dangerous."

"Try and stop me," she replied stubbornly, her green eyes glinting dangerously.

"But Lily," Frank persisted. "James wouldn't want you to endanger the baby."

"Who are you to say what he is thinking!"

"All I'm saying…"

"He's my husband and I want – no, I _have_ – to go."

"Frank," Sirius intervened when their friend angrily opened his mouth. "You're not going to persuade Lily no matter what you say, so give it a rest. It's her decision to make, not yours."

"But-"

"He's my _husband_," Lily said resolutely. "End of discussion."

Mary wasn't sure if this was such a good idea. The truth of the matter was that she agreed with Frank and would have liked Lily to stay at the Headquarters, along with Alice. Mary also knew that besides James, she was the only one who could persuade her friend, but before she could make up her mind, Edgar called her to him. "I need you to come to St.Mungo's with me. You're the only other person here who knows how to transport a heavily injured body by Apparation and that way, Albus can go to Canterbury. We'll meet up with the others as soon as we've taken care of Zabini."

Mary nodded and crouched down on the other side of Zabini to grab him by the arm. "Alright. Do we Apparate to the main hall?"

"No," Edgar replied urgently. "It's best if as few people as possible will know about this. There's a new ER-unit in the back building. We should take him there."

Mary shot a doubtful look at Zabini, who had just lost consciousness again. "Is he going to make it?"

Edgar shrugged. "He might be too weak to survive the Apparation, but if we do nothing, he'll die for sure. On my count: three, two…"

Mary shot one last look over Edgar's shoulder and met Sirius's eyes. He looked more worried than she had ever seen him and she mouthed "Be careful". He gave her an understanding nod. The last thing Mary saw before she disapparated was how Sirius turned back to Dumbledore and Moody to hear the final instructions.

The first thing Mary noticed when they apparated in the St.Mungo's ER-unit, was that it was a lot bigger than she had expected. In fact, it looked more like an entire hospital instead of just another department. And by the looks of it, Zabini had survived the Apparation. At least, he was still breathing, even if it was in a very unsteady way.

"Come on," Edgar said. "Let's put him on this stretcher."

When Edgar and Mary were carefully placing an unconscious Zabini onto the strecher, a few Healers came running towards them. "Edgar!" a chubby wizard with long blonde hair and a sweaty odour called Winchelsey cried. Mary groaned inwardly. She had only met this man once before, on her first day as a St.Mungo's-intern; he had been staring at her chest and legs instead of her face the entire time. Needless to say, Mary didn't like him very much. But Edgar did, or so it seemed. He was positively relieved to see Winchelsey. "Walter! I didn't know you were on duty tonight."

Winchelsey merely shrugged and shot a hungry look at Mary. "Switched shifts with Cortez. So what have we here?"

Edgar filled Winchelsey in on Zabini's condition and Mary had to admit: the chubby man may have been a git, but he happened to be an excellent Healer. Within minutes, Winchelsey had given clear instructions to his team and sent them off to take care of the patient. While Edgar and Mary were watching Zabini being led away to the HR, she had – for the first time that night – the feeling that he would make it after all.

"Thanks a bunch," Edgar told Winchelsey as he patted him on the arm. "Come on, Mary, we have more to do and we better hurry if-"

"Not so fast, Edgar," Winchelsey interrupted. "I need to make a report of the insertion."

"What? Since when?" Edgar frowned, looking disturbed, and Winchelsey rolled his eyes.

"I know, ridiculous, right?" he chuckled as he scratched his round belly. "The Ministry came up with it last week. From now on, Crouch wants to know everything about patients who have been attacked and admitted, and the people who brought them in."

"Hang on," Mary suddenly said. "Do you mean you're going to report our names?"

She regretted having opened her mouth one second later when Winchelsey started to eye her with a keen expression on his face. "Well yes, love," he replied with a snigger. "That's the whole point, isn't it?"

Edgar sighed impatiently. "Well, we have no choice. Give me that bloody form and I'll write something down. Can we leave after that?"

Winchelsey nodded. "Of course. It's all up to the Ministry from there."

Edgar nodded, took the roll of parchment and a quill from the Healer and started to fill out the form as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, Mary tried to ignore Winchelsey's intense gaze that, once again, seemed to be lingering on her chest. She accidentally-on purpose flicked her hair over her shoulder and made sure to show her engagement ring in the process. With success, because Winchelsey suddenly said: "You're engaged now, aren't you, love?"

"Yes," she replied absent-mindedly, thinking of Sirius. She was feeling more worried about him by the minute. Would he be fighting Death Eaters at this very moment?

"Lucky devil that guy!" Winchelsey sniggered. "Smart move, though. With a girl like you…"

He started to hum the familiar tune of "A girl like you". Mary suddenly felt annoyed; as it happened, Sirius _adored_ that song and would sometimes sing it to her. She now really started to wish Edgar would hurry up with that form. Mary suddenly noticed that she was subconsciously drumming her fingers on the desk on – to her horror - the beat of "A girl like you". Mary desisted at once and avoided Winchelsey's eyes. She felt immensely relieved when Edgar finally said: "Done." He passed the parchment over to her and after quickly skimming it, Mary also signed the form and handed it over to Winchelsey. "Thanks love," he grinned.

"Right, we're off then. Talk to you later, Walter," Edgar said as he started to walk off.

"Bye," Mary mumbled before quickly following him, more than eager to leave Winchelsey and his hummed version of "A Girl Like You" behind. The trouble was that the merry tune was now stuck in her head, contradicting her worried and depressed state of mind. As soon as they had left the hospital through the back door and were standing outside on a deserted parking-lot, Edgar said: "Right, now off to Canterbury."

Mary nodded. "I think it's best if we apparate to that nearby group of trees and bushes first."

"Agreed," Edgar replied and disapparated without another word.

When Mary materialized next to him behind two large poplars, she noticed he was already staring at the distant and deteriorated house on the other side of the lawn. Flashes of red and green light from the windows illuminated the usually dark environment. Edgar crossed the lawn and approached the house as silently and unseen as possible. Mary followed and when they were standing close to a piece of splintered wood that used to be the front door, Edgar put a hand on her shoulder. "Ready?"

Mary gulped. To be honest, she wasn't all that sure if she was. Nevertheless, she managed to smile at Edgar. "As ready as I'll ever be."

A grin flashed his anxious face. "I say, let's go and have some fun."

He turned and blasted the wrecked piece of wood apart, jumped through the door and by doing so, ended up in the middle of a fierce battle between Moody and two Death Eaters. Mary witnessed the scene for a moment as she was hiding behind the doorpost in an attempt to estimate the situation. Several Death Eaters and Order-members were duelling, but Mary couldn't see Voldemort anywhere. Or Dumbledore for that matter… Were they fighting out their own duel somewhere else? Right when Mary decided that it was best to assist Frank, who was currently warding off different curses at a time, she could hear two screams coming from upstairs. Lily. And _Sirius_. Mary felt her stomach crinch with worry and fear. She had to do something, now! She gripped her wand more firmly, jumped out of her hiding spot and stormed up the stairs with just one thought on her mind: whoever had had the nerve of hurting her boyfriend and best friend, was about to regret it. Mary was going to make that Death Eater pay. He or she would never spent another Azkaban-less day in their life, not if she could help it.

End of Update

**A/N: Two notes:**

**- HR Healing Room (instead of OR, of course)  
- The Troggs – A Girl Like You: a famous sixties song that deserves more respect than being hummed by a smelly and annoying Healer. If you want to listen to the song (recommended!), I'm pretty sure YouTube could help you out. Oh, and sorry for that cliffie. I'll try to update again soon, promise! -Mara**


	54. Love Is A Battlefield

A/N: Okay, here's the next chapter

**A/N: Okay, here's the next chapter. I hope you all enjoy. Lots of action in this update… Ehm, I have to warn you guys, though: t****his chapter also ends in a cliffhanger, although I don't think it will be that difficult to predict what the next update I going to be about… So enjoy and please R&R -Mara**

**Chapter Fifty-Four:**

It felt like ages before Mary had reached the second floor of the house. When she finally made it to the top of the stairs, she only had a few seconds to grasp what was going on. In that brief moment before she got attacked by a Death Eater jumping in front of her, she noticed that the upper storey had been magically enlarged; it wasn't just another floor, but looked like an entire hangar on its own.

The Death Eater cast several curses at her, but Mary managed to ward those off relatively easily. And to her surprise, the very first stunning curse she tried was a full hit. The Death Eater's legs got snapped together; he lost his balance, tumbled backwards over the rail and disappeared from sight.

Mary turned around and noticed that Sirius was only a few yards away from her; fighting two Death Eaters at once. She was about to run over to help him when she spotted Lily lying deadstill on the floor. Another Death Eater was just pointing his wand at her to cast a deadly curse, but before he could have done so, Mary had stunned him as well. She ran over to her friend and crouched down beside her. "Lily," she whispered urgently. "Lily, can you hear me?"

Lily opened her eyes. "Hey," she replied in a small voice as she leaned on her elbows. "I'm okay."

Mary pulled her friend back up, who groaned and reached for her head with her hand. "Ow, my head."

"What happened?"

"I bumped my head when I was fighting and- WATCH OUT!"

Mary ducked instinctively and this was a good thing, because a bright green jet of light was zooming right over her head and hit a filing cabinet instead; blasting it into hundreds of pieces. She quickly crawled back up and joined Lily in duelling the two Death Eaters that had attacked them. Mary realized that the one who was fighting Lily had been duelling with Sirius earlier, but her own opponent was someone else. It made her wonder how many Death Eaters were actually here tonight.

This Death Eater was a woman with raven black hair and fierce eyes that were glinting through her mask. Mary didn't think she had ever seen her before, but she instantly knew that this woman was dangerous and suspected she had been responsible for casting that killing curse. She also soon experienced that this Death Eater was an excellent dueller. For the first time in her life, Mary got the feeling that her opponent could quite easily beat her. She had trouble warding off all the difficult hexes and needed to focus intently to also cast jinxes in return. This was a lot easier said than done, because she was also feeling more worried about Sirius by the minute. Where was he?

In that brief moment when Mary wasn't entirely focusing on her own duel and tried to see how Sirius was doing, her opponent managed to disarm her. Mary could feel her wand flying out of her hands and witnessed it landing on the stairs at the other side of the floor. The Death Eater shouted triumphantly. Then she did something Mary hadn't expected: instead of killing her right on the spot, she used a curse that paralyzed Mary's legs. After she had collapsed onto the floor, the Death Eater grabbed Máry's hair and roughly started to pull her to some sort of chasm in the left corner.

Mary screamed from the pain and frustration of being unable to do anything. She kicked her legs on the floor and tried to scratch the Death Eater's hands with her nails, but this didn't stop her enemy from dragging her towards the chasm. Luckily, Sirius had finally managed to shake off the other Death Eater and appeared in front of Mary so quickly that he could have apparated there. The Death Eater dropped Mary at once. Her eyes were glinting even more maliciously when she looked at Sirius and hissed: "You."

Sirius glared back with equal dislike. "Yeah," he said. "Me."

The Death Eater raised her wand, but Sirius was quick enough to conjure a shield charm so that every hex bounced off and left him unharmed. Mary noticed that Sirius made sure that he was standing in front of her to protect her as well. But his shield only offered protection from one side. Several spells from other duels were landing on the floor right next to her. When a jet of green light bounced onto the ground and missed her face by a few inches, Mary slowly tried to drag herself to a safer spot.

She was just dragging the lower part of her body to a sheltered spot behind the debree of what once was a filing cabinet when she heard a loud crash. She turned back: a large piece of the ceiling had come down and hit the Death Eater full on the head. It had knocked her out and she collapsed onto the floor, blood dripping from under her mask. Sirius made sure he tied up the woman first before turning around. He shot one look at Mary's immobile legs before pointing his wand. "_Finite_".

The feeling in her legs returned instantly and she crawled back up. For a moment, she and Sirius just looked at each other. The sound of battle around them died away when Mary walked over to him and put a hand against his swollen and black eye. "You okay?" she whispered.

Sirius placed his hand over hers. "Yeah, it's nothing, don't worry. You?"

She nodded but didn't say anything and he asked: "How's Zabini?"

Mary thought of Zabini and the fact that he was currently being healed by Winchelsey and his team. "In a pair of particularly sweaty but good hands," she replied.

Sirius arched an eyebrow, but Mary didn't think this would be the right time and place to tell him about Winchelsey. "Never mind. So who was this Death Eater and why did you know her?"

Sirius didn't answer immediately and Mary realized she has asked him the wrong question. His grey eyes had become slightly darker and his gaze was expressionless, it seemed like roll-down shutters had come down and were hiding his true feelings from view. Mary concluded that this Death Eater had something to do with Sirius's past, but before she could tell him that, a new Death Eater jumped in front of them. You could ask yourself if it's wise to Apparate in front of two excellent duellers, but this plump-looking Death Eater didn't seem to care about that. He didn't look too clever and was cackling madly when he cried: "The Dark Lord has returned!"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at him. "Funny, I hadn't even noticed he left. Typically him to run off when things start to get rough."

The Death Eater growled with anger. "Never insult the Dark Lord in front of me! And just so you know: He only left to bring his cup to safety and-"

"His _what_?" Mary and Sirius called simultaneously.

"-Now he's back," the Death Eater continued undisturbed. "And you are all going to die, just like those friends of yours."

Sirius had already pulled his wand, looking simply murderous, and Mary's hand had also shot to her pocket when she realized that her wand wasn't there. She remembered it was still on top of those stairs. "I'm going to get my wand!" she yelled at Sirius, who was already duelling the fat Death Eater. Mary wasn't sure if he had heard her but she ran off anyway. When she had reached the stairs, she noticed that they looked different from the stairs she had used to get to the second floor. This long stairway looked ancient and fragile, at the point of collapsing. Mary normally wouldn't have thought twice of taking it, but she had no choice. Her wand was laying on the fourth step and she simply had to go and get it.

But the very second she put her foot on the first step made her regret she had done so. It seemed like those stairs weren't there at all. It felt like she was stepping into a void of air. Mary could feel she was starting to fall, but she wasn't just crashing down towards the floor, but actually tumbling down those half-existing stairs. Mary had snatched her wand in the process and tried to shoot a rope around the handrail so she could hold onto that, but this didn't work because the rail wasn't made of solid wood, but air. She had fallen right into one of Voldemort's traps and had no idea where it was taking her.

Mary continued to tumble down like a human snowball. She could see that the stairs reformed themselves behind her and went back looking just like the original fragile stairs, ready for their next victim. Mary then realized that she was approaching a brick wall at full speed; there was no way she could slow down before she reached it, she was going to crash and would be breaking several bones in the process. Mary did the best thing she could think of at this point: rolling herself up even more to protect her internal organs and braced herself for the crash to come. The wall was getting closer and closer, she was going to be smashed against the wall any second now-

And then Mary hit the wall. But it didn't hurt, nor did she bounce back from it. Instead, she rolled right through it as if - like those stairs - the brick wall didn't seem to be actually there. It turned out to be a kind of portal to another room. Passing the wall felt like walking through a waterfall. Mary could feel a light pressure on her body for a brief moment, but only a second later the feeling had disappeared and she had passed through the wall. Because of her high speed, Mary continued to make some more somersaults before she finally came to a halt on the cold ground, in the middle of what looked like an underground storage room.

Mary lay stretched out on her belly while trying to assess where she was. This wasn't easy because for one: her entire body was feeling knackered. And two: the world seemed to be dancing in front of her eyes, making her feel dizzy and disorientated. She rolled onto her back and waited for the world to stop making her feel like she was trapped in a hexed merry go round. She squinted her eyes on a small crack in the ceiling until finally, it slowly stopped moving and came to a rest. Mary sighed and was just crawling up to have a closer look at the pots and boxes in a nearby rack when she heard someone stammer: "Hello? Any..one?"

Mary turned around and got a firmer grip on her wand. That voice sounded like this person was in trouble and hurt, but was he? It could also just be another Death Eater, waiting for her to come out so he could attack her. After hiding behind the rack, she called back calmly: "Yeah, I am here. Who's this?"

The man coughed badly a few times before it produced another sound: "Ja-Jamess."

_James_?

Mary was already running over to him when she froze. This person could also _not_ be James, but someone who was impersonating him. How would she know for sure that her friend was James? She carefully peeked around the corner of the rack and noticed that James (or his impersonator) was laying in a heap on the ground, his head against the wall. He looked terrible; his face was covered in blood, his glasses askew. Mary hesitated. _If_ that person was not James, they were doing a very good job hiding it. On the other hand, all they would need was a bit of Pollyjuice potion. Mary thought it would be best to ask him a personal question and she took a deep breath. "James, I need you to answer a question for me. What did you and Lily do last Valentines Day?"

Silence. Mary gripped her wand even more firmly. If this guy was James, he would know the answer. When none came, she called: "James? Please answer the question, I _need_ to know!"

After another moment of silence, the man finally called back in a somewhat surprised voice: "Ma'y, isss tha' you?"

"Yeah, it's me. Now _please_ tell me what you did on Valentines Day!"

"Wha'?" He sounded confused. "We… We wen' iceskatin', but wha has tha' got… do with… any-thing?"

But Mary had already jumped from her hiding space and hurried over towards him. "I had to be sure," she explained as she couched down beside him. "Because you could have been a Death Eater impersonating you."

James shot her a dazed look. "Padfoo' hasss… trained you well. Any'ay, 'm ve'y glad to sssee you, Ma'y." He was talking like he had downed an entire bottle of Firewhiskey on his own. "And I- OW!"

He had yelled from the pain when Mary gently touched his cheek. "Sssht!" she hissed urgently. "Your nose is broken, but I can fix that. Hang on." She pulled her wand from her pocket. "_Episkey_."

"Ah thanks, that's loads better," James said and rubbed his healed nose. "My chest also hurts; it's burning on the inside like it's on fire or something."

Mary lifted his robes and concluded that several of his ribs were broken and that he might have more serious internal injuries. "I can mend those broken bones, but you still have to go to St. Mungo's as soon as we get out of here. Lily can take you there."

James smiled at the thought of his wife. "How's Lil?"

Mary pointed her wand and started to heal one of James's ribs. "She was doing fine a minute ago."

James paled. "She's _here_?"

"Well yeah, she's fighting along with the rest of us, but- James! Stay down."

He had tried to crawl up but cringed from the pain and Mary didn't have much trouble to push him back down. James shot her a worried look. "She cannot be here, why did she come?"

Mary frowned. "Because _you're_ here. And relax, she's doing great up there. Now tell me what happened."

"I'm not sure to tell you the truth, my memory is all hazy. We were being questioned by Voldemort and then tortured by him and some Death Eaters… And then you guys burst in and all hell broke loose. I remember my cuffs being cut by Brice and that I tried to look for my wand… Fabian and Gideon joining in on the fight… Some kind of stairs… I fell down… And woke up here. That's it, basically."

Mary smiled while pulling his robes back down. "Looks like you and I took the same road down here. What did Voldemort question you about?"

"He wanted to find out how much we knew about the object he was hiding here."

"And?"

"Well, we discovered that it's the same object Lily and I spotted in Egypt, you know, the Cup of Assiduity."

"Why does Voldemort need that cup?"

Despite their hopeless situation, James gave a loud snort. "To drink wine? Beats me."

Mary also laughed and shook her head as she leaned back against the wall. "I could use some wine myself, now that we're stuck in here."

James frowned. "We're not stuck, it's just that I don't have the strength to get up." He stared at the wall they had fallen through and mumbled: "What we need is some assistance… Hey, why don't you try and cast a Patronus through it?"

She followed his gaze. "That wall looks pretty solid to me. And what if my S.O.S-message gets to the wrong person?"

"Oh, it's not that solid, trust me. And remember that you can adress Patronusses to a single person. Send it to Sirius for example, or Peter or Frank."

Mary got up and walked over to the brick wall. She frowned. James could talk all he wanted, but the thing was looking as much as the wall it was supposed to be. However, when Mary cast the Patronus-charm, she noticed that the Dalmatian dog-like form erupting from her wand shot right through it. She had sent her Patronus to Sirius. Now all she could do was hope that he would receive the message, if he was still alive.

Mary had just turned back to James when her eyes fell on something mysterious that was twinkling on top of a shelf on one of the racks a few rows on. She slowly approached the shelf and was about to touch it when she could feel a tingling on the nape her neck. Sensing that she was being watched by hostile eyes, she immediately wheeled around with her wand at the ready. Mary froze on the spot. She was staring into the face of Voldemort himself.

His face was more terrifying than she could have imagined in her worst nightmares. Voldemort's face looked whiter than a skull with wide, livid scarlet eyes and a nose that was as flat as a snake's with slits for nostrils. For a moment they simply stared at each other. Mary felt paralyzed with fear. This was the first time she was standing in front of Voldemort and somehow, it felt completely surreal: adrenaline was rushing through her body, her chest was rising and falling rapidly, her head was swirling and she felt excited and frightened, but also courageous and – to her annoyance – submissive to the man who staring down at her with a look of utter disgust.

Mary half-heartedly raised her wand in an attempt to disarm Voldemort, but he countered the curse with one lazy flick of his wand before he - in a quiet and high voice that sent shivers down her spine – said: "You have come to the wrong place, girl."

Her eyes shot to James and noticed that he had passed out against the wall. Did Voldemort do that to him too? She looked back and eyed Voldemort's wand wearily. "B-But… Please-"

"Filthy, sickening, putrid little Mudblood. I have nothing to say to you." Voldemort raised his wand and Mary knew this would be the end. She shuffled back against the rack, terrified, closing her eyes and preparing herself to die, when she heard a soft pop and a quiet voice speaking calmly: "There you are, Tom. I have been looking for you, but rumor has it you are hardly traceable if you don't want to be."

"Albus". Mary hadn't said a word out loud, but when she opened her eyes, she could see that Voldemort was looking at no other but Dumbledore himself. She instantly knew everything was going to be okay. Everybody knew Dumbledore was the only wizard Voldemort feared. While the two of them were duelling, Mary tried to find a way to get to James without being hit by the curses that were flying around and bouncing off the walls. She eventually decided to crawl over the lowest shelves on the racks, pushing cans and jars aside on the way.

When she had finally reached James and established that he was both alive and awake, she dared to look at the duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort. They were using spells and curses Mary had never even seen before. Dumbledore waved his arm around his head like he was going to throw a lasso but instead, the purple rope-like charm that erupted from his wand protected him against every curse Voldemort was firing at him. It looked like that the Dark Lord was realizing that he was not going to win this battle, and with a sneering "This is not over yet, Dumbledore!", he disapparated.

Dumbledore immediately hurried over to Mary and James. "Are you alright?"

Mary, looking pale but unharmed, nodded. "Yes, I'm fine, thanks," she said and tried to help James back up. "But James needs to go to St.Mungo's. He's not critically injured, though."

"I'll live," James grinned bravely, but he groaned from the pain when he sat up straight.

"Easy James," Mary said soothingly before looking at Dumbledore. "Where's Voldemort?"

"Don't worry," he said reassuringly, interpreting the wavering tone in her voice correctly. "Voldemort was the last one here, all his Death Eaters have left the building. He will not return here, or at least not tonight."

Dumbledore pulled James up by the other arm and looked at Mary. "Shall we take James back to the main floor?"

Mary nodded and she and Dumbledore disapparated at the same time. They put James down on a decrepit-looking couch and cast a look around the place; some of the others were standing nearby. Lily was one of them. She ran over to James as soon as she saw them and hugged him close by nearly falling on top of him. "Ouch!" he groaned when her weight landed on his chest.

"I'm so glad you're alright!" Lily cried while burying her face in his neck. "I was so worried."

James gently patted her on the back and smiled weakly, but his eyes were twinkling when he said: "It's okay, honey, I'll be alright. Now where is my wand?"

"Right here," a voice sounded behind them. Sirius was standing right behind them. He walked over to James and, as Lily stepped back, handed the wand over to his best friend before giving him a close but virile hug with a pat on the shoulder. "Glad you're okay, mate," Sirius muttered.

James grinned back. "They'll need a bit more to finish off a Potter."

When Mary was watching the conversation between James and Sirius, she couldn't help but feeling slightly disappointed. She was also feeling relieved that everyone had survived, but Sirius had walked straight to James without even looking at her. And _she_ had just faced Voldemort and needed his support more than anything but apparently she, yet again, came in second place.

As if she had said those words aloud, Sirius suddenly turned around after all, walked over to her and pulled her close without saying a word. Mary's annoyance with him disappeared at once. "I saw Voldemort…" she whispered.

Sirius pulled back and looked into her eyes. "What?"

"Voldemort," she repeated. "I saw him downstairs. He… If Dumbledore wouldn't have come, I… He- I would have died, Sirius."

Sirius cupped her face with both hands and smiled, though not very convincingly. "But you didn't. I received your Patronus and sent Dumbledore down there, the others and I would have followed shortly, but then we discovered…" He swallowed as if he was changing his mind about something he was about to say. "So then we just waited for you to come back. And here you are, alive and kicking."

Mary smiled back weakly. "Where's Moody?"

"He and Peter are taking the three Death Eaters we caught to the Ministry."

Mary sighed, looking relieved. "Well, at least we're all okay now." Her eyes darted around the room. "Hang on," she said slowly. "Where are Fabian and Gideon?"

End of Update


	55. Loss Of A True Friend

A/N: Alright, so here it is: the next update

**A/N: Alright, so here it is: the next update. And, good news to some of you: the ending of this chapter is cliffie free! Anyway, I hope you like this one, because it explains exactly what happened in the battle while Mary and James were downstairs. So enjoy**** and please R&R!**

**Oh, some other popular characters of the HP-series will make an appearance in the next update. Care to guess who they are? Hint: they are connected to Fabian and Gideon. Not that hard, this one, right? -Mara**

**Chapter Fifty-Five**

"_Where are Fabian and Gideon?"_

Mary's question kept ringing in Sirius's head. He wasn't exactly sure what he should tell her, because he knew all too well what had happened to Fabian and Gideon; he, Peter and Frank had been right there with them, fighting that group of Death Eaters who were driving them towards a narrow edge on top of the open roof.

It was difficult to remember how he had ended up there in the first place. When Mary ran off to collect her wand, Sirius focused on defeating the fat Death Eater. Which he managed to do without much effort. After he had tied up and dropped his captive next to the other (still unconscious) Death Eater, he had started to look for Mary, who seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. But when he passed a particular erratic looking stairway, he saw a wand laying in front of the stairs. When he bent down to grab it, he noticed it was James's wand. But before he could actually start thinking about what his best mate's wand was doing there or where Mary was, he suddenly heard the sound of people duelling coming from the top of the roof.

Sirius stuffed James's wand inside his robes and tried to find a way to get there as soon as possible. He spotted a small ridge in front of him and didn't hesitate for a second; he jumped without looking down the precipice and proficiently caught the ridge with both hands. He needed all his strength to pull himself up onto the edge. Once he had straightened up and peeked through a narrow hole of the rail, he spotted a castigated-looking Gideon, Fabian and an unharmed Frank and Peter who were trying to fight off seven Death Eaters. They were outnumbered by three and Sirius realized they were in need of his help more than anything.

Sirius crawled onto the roof and stormed into battle. He stunned one of the Death Eaters by hitting the wizard in the back with the curse. Normally he would never attack someone from behind, but tonight, he felt that he didn't have a choice. Frank looked relieved to see him. "Sirius! Thank Merlin you're here," he shouted before pointing over to Gideon who was having trouble duelling two Death Eaters at the same time. "Go help him. Now!"

Sirius obediently sprinted over to Gideon, dodging several jets of red and green light on the way. He could just spot Fabian who was fighting a feisty-looking witch near the edge before he started to duel one of Gideon's attackers. For a while, it seemed as if the tables were slowly turning. Outnumbered the Order may be, but most of them - injured or not - _were_ far better duellers than these Death Eaters.

But at the very moment Sirius started to think they could actually win this fight, Gideon – who was still fighting right beside him – tripped over a piece of debree and fell down to his knees. Sirius turned around in alarm and stared at him; in that one second they looked at each other, his friend didn't look afraid; just surprised, as if he wasn't fully realizing the consequences of his fall.

Sirius jumped sideways and stretched out his arm, but before he could have pulled Gideon up, a bright jet of green light hit him right in the head. Gideon slumped down onto the floor, faced forward. Sirius instantly knew it was too late: Gideon was dead. For a moment, he simply stood there, staring at the limp body of a good friend, and one of the best Aurors of their time. Then he heard someone shout from behind: "Nooooo!"

Fabian.

Sirius turned back and looked at the edge where Fabian had been duelling the feisty-looking Death Eater. But he wasn't fighting her now. Instead, he – like Sirius had done only a few seconds ago – was staring at his twin brother's lifeless body. His wand was no longer raised, but had dropped to the floor and he was wearing a shocked and incredulous look on his face. Sirius spotted the danger of Fabian's opponent right when Frank was crying: "Fabian, watch out!"

Unfortunately, the female Death Eater had just raised her wand and was casting a jinx at Fabian. She did not use the Avada Kedavra-curse. Instead, she was simply petrifying him. Fabian - unable to move - swayed up and down like a small tin soldier while balancing on the edge for a few seconds, until his stiff body leaned over to the wrong side, resulting in Fabian tumbling right over the ridge, out of sight and - unmistakably - to his death.

The world seemed to have stopped moving. It just seemed impossible that Fabian could survive a fall from this height. Sirius tried to grasp that Gideon _and_ Fabian had died within minutes. He had momentarily forgotten about the remaining Death Eaters who were closing in on him, Frank and Peter. But it was Peter who acted first as he dived right on top of one of the Death Eaters with a furious roar.

Sirius and Frank followed Peter's lead, even though they knew perfectly well that they were even more outnumbered than before. Sirius began to think that there was a chance they would not make it out of here alive. He was warding off curses left and center, but could not prevent being hit by a powerful hex that blasted him all the way to the other end of the roof, smashing him against a wall.

His head swirling, Sirius crawled back up with difficulty. He was just preparing himself to return to the others when he stopped and squinted his eyes: was this because of the crash or was he _actually_ seeing the arrival of four new Order members? When the dizziness was finally starting to dissolve, he could conclude that it was indeed Dumbledore, Moody, Brice, Lily and Edgar that had come to their rescue.

This thought gave Sirius the vibe that he needed so badly. He gripped his wand more firmly and was about to hurry back when a Patronus materialized in front of him. And not just a Patronus: _Mary's_ Patronus. She was still alive, and so was James! Sirius heaved a relieved sigh before he remembered that they were still in danger. He ran over to Dumbledore, who had just effordlessly defeated a Death Eater with a single hex. "Albus!" Sirius panted. "Mary and James are trapped in some kind of basement. They need help. Do you want me to-"

"No," Dumbledore replied urgently, shaking his head. "Voldemort is still around. I'll go, and you can join me as soon as you get the chance."

Sirius nodded and watched Dumbledore disapparate before he turned around to get back to the fight, but noticed that the battle was already over. The crucial support from Moody, Brice, Lily and Edgar had proved to be too much for the Death Eaters and most of them had disapparated. Moody ordered Peter to assist him in transporting the captured Death Eaters to the Ministry and only a few seconds later, they – and their bound prisoners - were gone. Sirius looked at the second floor where he had tied up his two Death Eaters earlier, but both of them had disappeared; they probably had been released by one of their friends.

Sirius shrugged. That didn't matter much now. To find James and Mary was his first priority. He shot a look at Brice, Frank and Edgar who were examining Gideon's body before preparing himself to disapparate to the basement when Lily was softly tugging his sleeve. "Hey," she whispered in a small voice.

"Hi," Sirius replied, sounding more confident than he was feeling.

"Did you see what happened to… to Gideon and Fabian?"

He nodded gravely. "They're dead. Both of them," he added hoarsely and Lily gulped.

"That's awful… B-But what… What about James?" she stammered.

Sirius put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Lil, I just got a Patronus from Mary. Prongs is alright. He's hurt, but he'll be okay."

Lily shot him a relieved look. "He's with Mary? That's good, that is… Oh, but poor Gideon. And Fabian…"

She had started to cry. Sirius hesitated for a moment; he wanted to go downstairs to look for James and Mary, but he couldn't possibly leave Lily like this. Besides, Dumbledore was with them right now, they would be fine. Sirius pulled Lily into a close hug and whispered: "I know… I can hardly believe they're gone…"

She sniffed. "But Fabian… Dead, it'll break Mary's heart."

Sirius didn't know what to say to that and bit his lip. He kept stroking Lily's hair instead and she continued to sob, with her head on his shoulder. When he spotted a grave-looking Edgar – who had examined Fabian's body on the main floor - approaching them, he looked up. "So… Is he.. How?"

Edgar shot a cautious look at Lily before nodding slowly. "I'm sorry. Nobody could have survived that fall."

Lily let go of Sirius and looked at Edgar. "Did he suffer much?"

"No," Edgar replied softly. "He was killed instantly."

Sirius reached for Lily's hand and was trying hard to think of something comforting to say when they heard a loud crack. Dumbledore and Mary had apparated and were putting a racked-looking James down on an old couch in the corner. Lily instantly dropped Sirius's hand and ran over to James, embracing him more closely than ever before. He flinched, but Sirius could see his that friend was utterly relieved to be holding his unharmed wife in his arms.

Sirius shot a look at Mary, who had stepped down when Lily was jumping on top of James. He was shocked to see that her face was as white as a sheet, although she did not seem to be severely injured. He felt indecisive about what to do next. What had happened to her down there? He could tell that she needed him, but he didn't know how to comfort her. And she didn't even know that Fabian and Gideon had died. Ever since Fabian had told her about his feelings, the two of them had become really close. After he had accepted that Mary just wanted to be friends, they had started to hang out together frequently. Sirius sighed. How in Merlin's name was he supposed to tell her that Fabian was dead? If only he knew how-

_"Sirius!"_

Sirius's mind got jerked back to the present and he looked down at Mary. She was staring at him, frowning and looking confused. "Sirius, I cannot see Fabian. Where is he? And Gideon?"

Sirius avoided her gaze. What in Merlin's name was he going to do? He shot a hopeful look at Lily, but she and Dumbledore were ready to take James to St. Mungo's. He had no choice… He was going to have to tell her. But when Sirius had taken a deep breath and finally looked at her, she was already reading the answer in his eyes.

Mary shook her head vehemently. "No…" she stammered. "No, tell me it isn't true."

Sirius bit his lip. "I'm so sorry, love… There was nothing we could do."

She was blinking back a few tears. "Where is he?"

Sirius shot her a look before realizing that it had to be Fabian she was talking about. "Downstairs, he got stunned and fell down, but- Hey! What are you doing?"

Mary had turned around and was heading down the stairs. Sirius exchanged a worried glance with Brice, who had looked up when Mary passed her on the way. "Sirius," she said cautiously. "I don't think Mary should see… Well, him. Not like this."

Sirius knew Brice was right. Fabian had fallen from a high distance and crashed right onto the floor, that would not be a pretty sight. Sirius hurried down the stairs as fast as his flogged body was allowing him. When he got down to the main floor, he saw that Mary was feverishly searching between the debree, looking for Fabian. Sirius located the body about a second before she did and when she was running towards Fabian, he grabbed her arm and forced her to stop. "Mary, don't…"

She tried to pull away. "Let me go."

"You shouldn't see this. Please, trust me."

He tried to pull her closer to him, but she put her hands on his chest and whispered: "Don't you understand that I _have_ to do this? I need to see for myself to… Realize he's really gone."

"But there will be a funeral-"

"Now, Sirius. I have to come to terms with his death _now_. Please…"

Sirius looked at her and realized she had a point. He let go and remained behind, doing nothing while watching Mary kneel down next to Fabian's body. He forced himself to do nothing as he witnessed her carefully straightening Fabian's torn robes. But watching her stroking Fabian's face while tears were streaming down her face, was just too much. Sirius walked over to them, kneeled down and pulled her close without another word.

She fell back against him, burying her face in his neck and she continued to sob silently while Sirius was stroking her hair. He was also in shock, but seeing Mary cry like this was truly breaking his heart. "I'm so sorry," he whispered.

Mary lifted her head and looked at him, her bright blue eyes shimmering with tears. "He was so happy. Did you know he was seeing a girl?"

Sirius gently wiped a tear off her cheek. "No, he never said."

"Well, it was still early days. She was a Muggle girl called Sarah."

"Did you know her well?"

Mary sighed. "I only met her once, but she seemed nice. And now I have to go visit her and explain that he… that he died."

_Crack!_

Sirius and Mary looked up and saw that Moody had apparated right behind them. The Auror approached them with a grave expression on his scarred face, a dull clunk resounding through the shed every time his wooden leg landed on the ground. "Ah, poor lad," he grunted, looking down at Fabian's body. "He did not deserve this."

Mary merely sniffed and Sirius said: "Nor did Gideon."

Moody shook his head. "Indeed. Both of them were extraordinary wizards. I don't really get why…"

"Well, isn't that obvious?" Mary asked, looking up at Moody. "They were outnumbered. No matter what a brilliantly skilled wizard you are, if it's six against two, you don't stand much of a chance."

"I suppose so," Moody shrugged. After a pause, he added gruffly: "At least it happened in a way they would have wanted to."

"What has that supposed to mean?" Mary called, flaring up.

Moody shot her a surprised look. "Dying in a fierce battle," he said after a pause. "That is every Auror's dream."

"Oh, is it now?!" she snapped. "And how well did you know him? As far as I know, Fabian never had the ambition to be tortured for hours before crashing to his death from a bloody roof top."

"Calm down," Sirius was trying to intervene, but Mary wasn't listening and nor was Moody. He looked about as angry as she did when he said: "He died an heroic death!"

"Fabian wanted to live a long and happy life!" Mary yelled, getting to he feet to face Moody head on, her fists clenched by her side. "He wanted to get married and raise a family. _That_ was his dream, not to die fighting like a hero."

"It's a _war_, Woods. People _die_ in battle."

A mirthless laugh escaped Mary's throat. "Oh, right, and that makes it okay, doesn't it?"

"Fabian and Gideon were well aware of the risks."

"That's enough!" Sirius yelled and he jumped between Moody and Mary. "Moody, stop acting like you know everything. Mary, don't blame Moody for what happened. This is not getting us anywhere so just stop it, the both of you."

Mary's eyes were still shooting daggers at Moody, but in the end she shrugged and muttered grudgingly: "I suppose I am overreacting a bit. I shouldn't blame you for this, I'm sorry."

Moody nodded. "I understand that Fabian's death has shocked you, but it's about time you realize what being part of the Order is really about. Do you want to take Fabian's body upstairs, or shall I? I'm about to assist Dumbledore in telling the Prewetts anyway."

Mary didn't reply and stared at the ground, so it was Sirius who replied instead: "That would be great, thanks."

Moody gave him a nod, crouched down next to Fabian's body. A second later they had disapparated, leaving nothing behind but an empty and surreal-looking spot on the floor.

Sirius reached for Mary's hand. "We should head back to the others," he said gently.

Mary nodded absent-mindedly and followed him upstairs. Sirius had decided it was best if they walked, considering she wasn't very focused at the moment, let alone able to disapparate. When they finally walked up to the others, Dumbledore and Moody had already disapparated and James and Lily had also left.

Brice, who was still around and talking to a group of Ministry representatives, noticed his searching look and walked over to them. "Lily took James to St. Mungo's. She just sent me an owl. They're going to keep him over night, but he should be fine."

A huge burden was being lifted from his shoulders and he heaved a relieved sigh. "Well, at least that's _some_ good news."

"Hu-hum," Brice answered, eyeing Mary with a concerned look on her face. "Mary? Will you be okay?"

Mary looked up and smiled weakly. "I don't have much choice, do I? I'll be fine. I just really want to go home."

"Of course," Sirius nodded. "Then we should leave now. Will you be alright too, Brice?"

Brice nodded. "Yeah, me and the others are going to deal with the Ministry and Peter will bring me home afterwards."

"Great. Come on," Sirius told Mary. "Are you able to disapparate home?"

She rolled her eyes. "Fabian's death has not yet turned me into a retard, no. Means yes," she added, looking annoyed when he shot her a confused look.

Mary let go of his hand and prepared to disapparate. Sirius waited until she had left, just to be sure. If she _did_ splinch herself, at least he'd be able to bring back the missing pieces with him. But this did not happen and after Sirius gave Brice a hug and told her to take care of herself, he also disapparated home.

Sirius and Mary didn't talk much when they were undressing and preparing themselves for the night, but Fabian and Gideon did not leave their minds for a second. Once they had gone to bed, Sirius noticed that Mary was having trouble to fall sleep. She kept turning from side to side while constantly heaving impatient sighs. "Mare?" he whispered when he couldn't take it any longer.

"What?" she replied, turning around to face him.

"Do you need me to brew you a Sleeping Draft?"

"No," she whispered. "It's just… I still can't believe it. He died, Sirius. He's really… gone."

He reached for her hand. "I don't know if this helps, but according to Edgar, he did not suffer. It happened in a split second."

Sirius left out the fact that Fabian fell to his death because he had been stupefied on purpose. He would have to explain that to her eventually, but now was not the time. It was hard enough as it was.

Mary sighed. "Actually… I feel terrible about this, but it's not Fabian I am thinking about."

"What do you mean?"

She hesitated and Sirius watched the moonlight coming through the window that was being reflected in her teary eyes. He squeezed her hand. "Go on, you can tell me."

"Well…" Mary said after another pause. "Of course it is devastating that they were killed. But tonight's row with Moody, that wasn't really about them. It... It was about you."

Sirius started to realize what she was referring to. And he understood – and completely agreed with – what she was talking about, because he felt exactly the same. "You mean…"

"I could have lost you tonight and – I hate myself for thinking this – I'm actually relieved that it's Fabian and Gideon who died."

She gave a quiet sob and he pulled her close. "Don't do that. It's only a natural thought," he muttered. "And if it makes you feel any better: the same thing has crossed my mind. When you left to get your wand and didn't come back, I thought… Well, Merlin knows what I thought. The fact that you could have died too was driving me nuts."

Mary looked at him. "Are you serious?"

"Deadly serious." Without quite meaning to, he chuckled. "Sorry, bad choice of words. But now what…" He hesitated before expressing the thought that had been in his head ever since Gideon and Fabian had died. "Do you want to drop out?"

Mary's hand clasped the hem of the sheets a little tighter, making her engagement ring shimmer in the moonlight. "To be honest, I don't. That would be an insult to Gideon and Fabian's memory, and to every other Order-member who have died before them."

Sirius pulled her even closer and she put her head on his shoulder, her hand softly stroking his chest. He realized that he had always known that Mary would not want to leave the Order. Despite the fact that Sirius was now fearing that one day soon, they wouldn't be burying "just" another Order-member, but himself, James, Remus, Lily or – he closed his eyes – Mary, if he was being completely honest with himself, he would never leave the Order, not if he wanted to remain able to live with himself. He took a deep breath and inhaled the scent of Mary's skin before he kissed her hair and whispered back: "Yeah, same here."

End of Update


	56. A Grave Matter

Chapter Fifty-Six

**Chapter ****Fifty-Six**

Over the next days, everyone was talking about Fabian and Gideon's death. There were Order–meetings almost every night in order to analyze the events that had led to the death of the Prewett-brothers. How had they (and the others that were with them) been caught? What was Voldemort doing in Canterbury? What was the importance of that Cup of Assuidity? During one of the meetings, Alice suggested that Voldemort could be using the Cup to make another Horcux, but according to Dumbledore, that was an unlikely scenario. He postulated that he had his reasons, but that he would not share his view with the others until he had found more proof on this theory.

Meanwhile, Zabini was still in St. Mungo's. It had taken Winchelsey and his team hours before they figured out the effects of the curse (which caused unstoppable internal bleedings), but once they did, they were able to stop the bleeding and Zabini had been recovering nicely. He was also cleverly using Mary, who usually visited him every day she was at work, and made her bring him a special kind of herbal tea and chocolate brownies because he couln't stand the hospital food.

James got sent home the day after the attack. He was still bruised, but didn't have to stay at St.Mungo's and was allowed to recover at home, as long as Lily made sure that he stayed in bed. Which turned out to be quite the challenge one night, when James pretended to be fine so he could go to a Chudley Cannons-match with Remus, Sirius, Peter and Frank, when he was not feeling well at all. Luckily, Lily knew what he was doing and demanded he would stay home. She stuffed her husband back in bed with a book and a glass of pumpkin juice before delivering a sermon to the others for being so stupid to invite James to a Quidditch match.

Mary was working overtime at St. Mungo's: more and more people - including Muggles - were being brought in after they had been injured in attacks and Pierce needed both her and Ching-Lu to work around the clock. Needless to say this was exhausting, but Mary was grateful for the distraction. To be caught up in work prevented her to think about Fabian and Gideon's death too much. At least during the day, because there was no way to escape troubled thoughts at Order-meetings.

The night before the funeral - which would be taking place on Mary's birthday - after another long meeting that concerned other locations Voldemort could be using had finally come to an end, Dumbledore asked Mary and Sirius to stay behind. When the others were going home, they remained seated at the long table. Mary placed her head on her arms and closed her eyes for a moment. She wished she was already home in her bed.

"So," Dumbledore said kindly after he sat back down, facing Mary and Sirius. "You're probably wondering why I wanted to talk to you in private."

Mary thought this was a rhetorical question, but Dumbledore shoot them an expecting look, so after exchanging a glance with Sirius, she said: "Well, yes… What is going on?"

Dumbledore folded his hands and seemed to be contemplating his words for a moment. At last he asked: "How are things going with the wedding?"

Mary frowned and Sirius shot him a puzzled look. "Eh… Alright, I guess. We just haven't had much time to figure out what we want. Why?"

"And what wedding date did you have in mind?"

"I'd love to have a Spring-wedding. So the end of May, possibly?" Mary said thoughtfully, looking over at Sirius.

"Or somewhere in June?" he suggested with a smile. "May is only three and a half months away." He looked back at Dumbledore. "But I'm going to repeat my question: why?"

The Headmaster shot them a concerned look. "What would you say if I suggested that it might be better to postpone the wedding?"

It felt like a giant stone was being plunged into Mary's stomach with great force. "Postpone?!" she replied shrilly.

Sirius's response was calm; he sounded more concerned than upset when he asked: "But why, Albus?"

Dumbledore sighed and leaned forward. "I have long been able to draw protective lines around certain areas, such as chapels and party areas, but I fear that these borders won't be strong enough to ward off Voldemort any longer. He's developing skills faster than ever before. And with a possible spy acting from inside the Order… I can momentarily no longer secure your safety or that of your loved ones on a public event, such as a wedding."

"But…" Mary persisted, unwilling to give in that easily. "Is there nothing you can do?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Well, Unless you decide to use a Secret Keeper, but I would advise you to wait until things have calmed down slightly."

Mary was still trying to accept that her Spring-wedding was being called off, but Sirius had been paying more attention. "Hang on," he said, "What about the funeral tomorrow? That's also a public event."

Dumbledore smiled grimly. "You are quite right, Sirius. Which is why the funeral will be supervised by Ministry Aurors. And indeed, should you wish Auror protection on your wedding, that of course can be arranged."

Mary looked aghast. "I am _not_ having Aurors playing… playing… bodyguards on my wedding!"

Sirius snorted. "Bodyguards?"

"It's a Muggle-term for people who look like walking tree trunks and guard famous persons."

"But an Auror is not only-"

"I know it's not!" she snapped before sighing and rubbing her eyes. "I guess we don't have much choice. Let's just call the whole thing off, then."

She was unable to conceal the disappointment in her voice and Sirius reached for her hand. "No one is talking about calling off the wedding, we'll probably just get married in the pouring rain instead, that's all."

Mary knew that Sirius was trying to cheer her up, but she failed to answer his smile and shrugged. Dumbledore noticed and shot her a close look. She got the feeling he was reading her mind, but was too tired to block her mind. Instead, she pulled a hand through her hair and said: "It's just…"

"In most cases, patience is a real virtue, Mary," Dumbledore observed.

"Yeah, try that again with my family," she muttered darkly.

Mary was making it sound like a joke, but Dumbledore could not be fooled. "How much do your parents know about your current situation?"

"Not much," she confessed. "They don't know anything about the Order, if that's what you mean."

"And don't you think they have the right to know what their daughter is up to?"

"My dad spends his days worrying about me enough as it is. I just don't want to disconcert them unless I don't have a choice."

Dumbledore nodded. "Understandable. But considering the current danger in our world, I do recommend to reconsider your point of view. The Prewetts did not know that their sons were part of the Order. I do not wish the fate of finding out about your child's involvement after they die upon anyone else."

Nobody spoke for a moment. All that could be heard was the crackling of the fire in the background, when Sirius finally rose and said: "I'm sure Mary will think about it, but if you don't mind, I'd really like to go home. With the funeral tomorrow, and the birthday, we have a busy day ahead of us."

Dumbledore nodded and wished them a good night before heading downstairs to pay the bill. Mary and Sirius travelled home without talking much. When he was brushing his teeth and she tried to untangle her long hair, she was staring at her reflection in the mirror before whispering: "Maybe we should skip my birthday."

Sirius shot her a stunned look. "Wha-?" he stammered with flocks of toothpaste ending up on the mirror.

"I'm not in a festive mood anyway. I don't see the point, really."

"The point?" he said after spitting out the toothpaste and rinsing his mouth. "The _point_ is that you'll become twenty-one. Fabian wouldn't have wanted you to skip your own birthday."

"You think so?"

Sirius grabbed the brush out of her hands and started to comb his own hair. "Yep. And I assure you that you really don't want to miss out on my present."

A rare smile crossed Mary's face and she put her arms around his neck. "Any chance of telling me what it is?"

Sirius raised his eyebrows. "What do you think?"

Mary laughed and gave him a teasing kiss in his neck. "And there's no way I could persuade you?"

"Well, I can think of something…" he replied mischievously while pulling her towards the bedroom, determined to make her forget about the funeral, even for only an hour.

The next day, they got up early and prepared for the funeral. While Sirius was downstairs having some breakfast, Mary was trying to decide what to wear. Eventually she chose a knee-length black skirt with tights and pointy black heels and a dark grey turtleneck. She put her hair up in a tight chignon. When she came downstairs and poured herself a cup of coffee, Sirius looked up from reading the Daily Prophet. "You look nice."

"It's a funeral, Sirius," she sighed. "I'm not supposed to look nice, but decent and appropriate."

"Like McGonagall, you mean."

Mary couldn't help but smile. "Yeah exactly, like McGonagall."

Sirius grinned and got up from his chair. "Well, let me tell you: you look just as decent, but a lot prettier than our former Head ever did. Shall we go?"

Mary nodded and finished her coffee and cereal. She followed Sirius outside to his bike. It was rather foggy, but the weather report predicted it wouldn't be raining today. Sirius wanted to travel by bike and Mary didn't mind that much. When they arrived at the church, he parked the bike on a nearby courtyard and they walked to the church together, trying to ignore the four Aurors standing in front of the entrance.

After they condoled Fabian and Gideon's parents, Mary spotted James and Lily standing at the other end of the church, near the altar and coffins. James looked weak, but seemed determined to make it look like he was strong enough to attend the funeral. Lily was talking softly to a kind-looking thin man with bright red hair and glasses, who was holding the hand of a skinny boy that was sucking its thumb while interestedly studying the cupola of the church.

They walked over to James and Lily, who smiled when she spotted them. "Look," she said. "Meet Sirius Black and Mary Woods, another two good friends of Fabian and Gideon. Sirius, Mary, this is Arthur Weasley, he was their brother-in-law."

Arthur reached out to shake their hands and Sirius said: "It's a pleasure to meet you. And my sympathies."

Arthur smiled wryly. "Likewise. Oh well, this is the curse of our time. If only-"

"_Fred. George!_"

A shrill female voice boomed through the church. They all turned around and noticed a short, plump – which could be because she was heavily pregnant – witch with a stressed-faced face and bright red hair approaching two little twin brothers who were tying together the ribbons of several flower bouquets. "Stop doing that right now." She pulled up both toddlers and shot them a stern look. One of the kids started to cry. "Don't Fred," the witch said dismissively. "I told you this morning that it was crucial to behave yourselves today and what do you do?"

The twins shot her a guilty look and muttered simultaneously: "Sorry."

The witch smiled. "Alright now. But I need you boys to stay with your brothers, okay?" She turned back and called two other – older – boys with flaming red hair, who came running towards their mother. "Bill, Charlie, please keep an eye on Fred and George from now on. If they prank someone during the memorial service, I don't think I can handle-"

"-Don't you worry, mum," the oldest boy called Bill said obediently. "We won't lose them out of our sight."

The witch smiled and ruffled Bill's hair before she watched them picking up the toddler twins and carrying them outside. She then turned around. "Did you see that, Arthur? I lose them out of sight for _one_ second and… If only they were as obedient as little Percy here." She kneeled down and kissed the little boy, who was still holding Arthur's hand, on his hair.

"Molly," Arthur said kindly. "Come and meet these friends of Fabian and Gideon: James and Lily Potter and Sirius Black and Mary Woods. This is Molly, my wife and sister of Fabian and Gideon."

Molly's eyes had lit up at the mention of Mary. She quickly shook hands with the others before she looked back and smiled sadly. "Ah, so you are the infamous Mary."

"Eh… Yes, I am," Mary replied carefully, uncertain if Molly was being serious or not.

"Fabian always spoke very highly of you. Not that he never talked about you, of course," Molly added while looking around the group. "But this reminds me, it is your birthday today, isn't it?"

Mary blushed. "That is not important. I don't want anyone to know. Today is about Fabian and Gideon, not me."

"Of course not, dear," Molly said absent-mindedly while rummaging around in her overlarge shoulderbag. "Now where is it? I know I've put it in here somewhere."

Mary exchanged a bemused look with Lily. "Mrs. Weasley?"

But Molly's head had already reappeared from the bag. "Got it!" She handed Mary a present. "It's from Fabian, for your birthday. And please dear, call me Molly."

Mary looked at the heavy object in her hands. It looked like a book, but was wrapped in shiny paper so she couldn't tell for sure. But this was a gift from Fabian. Something he had probably bought her only a few days ago, and now he was no longer around to give it to her himself. She got overwhelmed by emotions and swallowed hard. "Thank you," she whispered and put the present in her bag. She wouldn't open it until she was ready and she doubted that was going to be tonight.

"Yes," Molly sighed, blinking back a few tears herself. "That was Fabian alright. Always the perfect gentleman. A perfect friend, a perfect brother…"

She pulled out a pink handkerchief and blew her nose loudly. "There, there," Arthur said as he pulled her close and kissed her forehead. "I think we'd better go and find our seats. I'll see you guys after the service. Looking forward to your speech, Mary."

He gave them a final nod, turned around and pulled Molly and Percy along. Mary watched them sit down at the front while she was thinking about the speech. She and Frank had written it and would present it together, since they had been the closest to Fabian and Gideon.

"Come on," Sirius said. "Remus, Brice and Peter are already in their seats as well. We'd better join them."

The four of them walked to the others and Mary was about to sit down when she noticed a shy-looking girl with blonde hair was standing near the entrance. It was Sarah, the Muggle-girl Fabian had been dating. She quickly excused herself and walked to Sarah, who looked clearly relieved to spot a familiar face in a crowd of strangers. "Mary!" she said. "Am I glad to see you."

Mary smiled sadly. "How are you feeling?"

"I was alright before today. I knew I had to come here, and I don't know anyone…"

"You know me," Mary replied. "And you can sit with me and my friends."

Mary walked back and Sarah followed hesitantly, still looking uncomfortable. "Okay Sarah, from the right to the left: Sirius, Peter, Lily, James, Brice, Remus, Alice and Frank. Guys, this is Sarah, she was Fabian's girlfriend."

"Not officially, though," Sarah interrupted. "I only met him a month ago."

"But his death must have been a big shock for you," Remus said kindly.

"It hasn't been easy," she admitted. "But I'll be fine."

She looked at Mary, who noticed that the girl didn't like being the centre of attention and said: "You can sit with me, if you like."

Sarah nodded and sat down at the very end of the bench, aside Mary who was sitting next to Sirius. The memorial service started shortly after. When the priest had finished his introductory speech, Bilius Weasley – a brother of Arthur and another good friend of Fabian and Gideon - climbed the stage to give the church a recap on their life. After a short music interlude, including a Weird Sisters-song that had been Gideon's favorite for years, it was time for Frank and Mary to give their speech.

They mostly focused on why Gideon and Fabian were such wonderful persons and tried not to make it too sentimental, because they knew the brothers would have hated that. Mary, who wasn't quite as snivelly as she had feared, referred to Fabian's optimistic view on life and his talent to make you feel better in difficult times, simply by being there and listening to your elegy. Frank mentioned Gideon's brilliant sense of humor and the fact that he taught little Fred and George their very first prank (exchanging Arthur's glasses with a fake one that had an everchanging spectacle frame). Almost everyone – including Arthur and Molly – laughed aloud, doing exactly what Frank and Mary had been hoping for.

When they had finished and walked back to their seats, it was Mr. Prewett's turn. The father praised the bravery of his sons and the fact that they had died for a good cause. His voice croaked slightly when he said that he would be missing them every day and that their deaths should never be forgotten. He paused to take a deep breath and for the first time that day, Mary felt a sole tear trickling down her cheek. There should be an unbreakable law to prevent parents from having to bury their own children, there really should.

Meanwhile, Prewett sr. had cleared his throat and was inviting four serious-looking men in black robes to the stage. He said that they would sing the old British hymn "Only Remembered" that would explain what he wanted to say much better than he ever could. Mister Prewett stepped down and let the four singers take the stage. Mary wasn't quite sure what to expect, but once the men had opened their mouths and started to sing, shivers were being sent down her spine.

_Fading away like the stars in the morning,  
Losing the light in the glorious sun,  
Thus would we pass from this earth and its toiling,  
Only remembered for what we have done._

Only remembered, only remembered,  
Only remembered for what we have done.  
Thus would we pass from this world and its toiling,  
Only remembered for what we have done.

Only the truth that in life we have spoken,  
Only the seeds that in life we have sown,  
These shall pass onwards when we are forgotten,  
Only remembered for what we have done.

Mary wasn't fighting the tears any longer and felt them dripping down her chin one by one, right into her lap. Sirius put a comforting arm around her shoulder, which made her cry even more. Although contrary to some other funeral guests, she was crying surreptiously and she was grateful for that.

_Who'll sing the anthem and who'll tell the story  
Will the line hold? Will it scatter and run?  
Shall we at last be united in glory?  
Only remembered for what we have done._

Mary glanced sideways and noticed that Sarah was crying as well, but that there was no one around to comfort her. She reached out her hand and Sarah took it after shooting her a grateful look. The three of them watched the remaining part of the performance together.

_Only remembered for what we have done.  
Shall we at last be united in glory?  
Only remembered for what we have done._

When the song ended, the church remained mouse-still. The four men gave a last respectful nod at the coffins and left the stage without speaking another word. Soon after that, the priest ended the memorial service and invited them to take Fabian and Gideon to their final resting-place. The burial took place in peace and Mary noticed that even though the Aurors were around to protect them, they remained on a safe distance to give the family and friends some well-appreciated privacy.

Afterwards, most funeral guests were invited to join the Prewett and Weasley-family in having a big lunch together. And, as usual on a day like this, once the guests were eating and drinking together, the gloomy atmosphere from the funeral disappeared and got replaced by loudly chatting and even laughing people. Mary felt guilty about it at first, but eventually decided that Fabian and Gideon wouldn't have wanted them to stay depressed too long anyway.

Sarah didn't want to come along to the lunch. She wanted to go home instead, but promised Mary that they would stay in touch. Mary doubted if she would ever see Sarah again, but she gave the girl some credit for coming to the funeral all by herself.

When the lunch was over, Sirius and Mary told the others goodbye and after thanking Fabian and Gideon's family for their hospitality, they walked towards the bike. They were supposed to be visiting Mary's parents next, but she still wasn't feeling like celebrating her birthday. And she was about to inform her family on why she and Sirius were postponing their wedding. Nevertheless, she climbed onto the bike and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist. When they were soaring through the air, Mary thought about Fabian once more and that from now on, this was going to be the closest she'd ever get to him, until she died herself.

Sirius landed his bike in the backyard of the Woods residence and gave Mary a hand to get off, who sighed and prepared herself to head inside when he grabbed her hand. "Hang on a sec."

Mary turned around, her eyebrows raised. "What?"

"I want to give my present to you now."

"What here? _Now_?"

Sirius nodded. "We'll be talking about our postponed wedding for the rest of the day, and I thought this would bring back at least some positive thoughts. Concerning our wedding, I mean."

She frowned. "You're giving me a wedding present?"

"Sort of." He reached inside his bag and pulled out a parcel. Mary took it and sat down on a stone garden bench. She tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box: inside was the very magazine Lily had been reading on the night Fabian and Gideon died: the magazine with the idyllic-looking chapel in Kent. "What is this?" she asked, looking confused.

Sirius crouched down before her. "I know you would love to get married there, so I asked Dumbledore to talk to the priest of that chapel and… Well, this is where we'll get married."

"But… We won't be married anytime soon."

"I know that," he said. "But the priest promised that it's possible for us to book the chapel in every season, so whenever we want, basically. Now flip the page."

Mary turned the page; there was another, smaller box stuck inside the magazine. She opened it carefully: inside was a magnificent diamond bracelet, which without a doubt would have cost a fortune. "Sirius…" she said softly. "You shouldn't have…"

"Damn right I should," Sirius grinned. "You can keep this bracelet, but on one condition."

"What do you mean?"

"That you will wear it on our wedding day. Whenever _that_ is going to be," he added, rolling his eyes.

"Of course I will," Mary cried before flinging her arms around his neck to give him a tender kiss, still holding the bracelet in one of her hands. Despite everything that happened and that they had been forced to push back the wedding date, this gift had showed her something: that their love was all that mattered, and one day – whether it be weeks, months or even years away - they _were_ going to get married. And on that blissful day, she would be wearing this very bracelet.

End of Update

**A/N: "Only Remembered" is an old Britsh hymn about the million young soldiers who have died in the trenches during the first World War. I was using the a-capella version of Coope, Boyes, Simpson & Detaeye which, should you be interested in hearing it, unfortunately is not available on the internet.**

If you want to catch the melody, the acoustic version can be found on Bob Fox's album The Blast (it's on iTunes), but that version doesn't even come close to the impact of the a capella-song. They played it on my grandfather's funeral, so I know how it sounds in a church. Very impressive, I can tell you.

**The next chapter will be a lot happier. And there will be an unexpectant surprise for Sirius and Mary. Care to guess what you think it could be? I'd love to hear it! –Mara.**


	57. Extending Bloodlines

Chapter Fifty-Seven:

**Chapter Fifty-Seven:**

"What do you guys think of Nathaniel?"

Alice looked up from a book on baby names, slightly squinting her eyes in the sun as she looked from Lily – sitting next to her in the shade – to Brice and Mary, who were sunbathing on the ground in front of them.

It was the end of June and Alice and Frank had invited them and the guys over to France to forget about the war for a week. Alice's parents owned a second house in the Provence; with its large pool, beautiful surroundings and distant location, it was the perfect place to come and relax. It would probably be the last opportunity for Alice and Lily (both of them were about eight months pregnant) to go on a holiday before their babies were born, but the others were just as keen on getting away from London.

Mary for one was finding it hard to accept that everything went back to normal after Fabian and Gideon's death. Sirius had been supportive in the first weeks after the funeral, but eventually demanded she would give their deaths a rest and move on like the rest of them. Mary knew Sirius was right, but it remained difficult to put it all behind her.

Meanwhile, not much had changed in the Order, although one new member had joined the ranks: Elphias Doge. Apparently – since he was much older than the rest of them – this man was a clever and experienced wizard, but all Mary could see whenever she looked at him was his ridiculous hat. No one knew why (and so far, none of them had the guts to ask), but Elphias insisted on wearing this thing that could best be described like an absurd mix between a tea-cosy and a stuffed cat. They all had a good laugh about it, although Peter did say they shouldn't draw any conclusions before they had seen Doge in action, and that the hat could easily possess secret magical powers. At which James burst out laughing and said: "And what would that be? Spitting out explodable hairballs?"

Still, the dangers of the war were always present. Not a day went by without people getting killed or attacked, so an escape like this holiday was more than welcome. Feeling the warm sun on your skin on a bright day in June was truly relaxing. When Alice asked the girls about the name Nathaniel, Mary and Brice shrugged, but Lily smiled and said: "Nice, but I would abbreviate it to Nathan."

"Hmmm," Alice replied while sipping her iced lemonade. "Maybe. What about Neil, Neville, Nelson? Or, when it's a girl: Nadia, or perhaps Nancy?"

Brice pulled off her sunglasses and shot her a curious look. "Those are a lot of N's, Alice."

She smiled. "I know, Frank and I want to let the first name start with a N."

Mary, who was lying flat on her stomach and flicking through a French fashion magazine, shrugged. "I like Nancy better than Nadia, but don't ask me why."

"Hmm," Alice repeated before scribbling down the names on a piece of parchment.

"How about you and James?" Brice asked, looking at Lily.

Lily smiled and caressed her round belly for a moment. "We've already decided to name the baby after James's parents, so Harry James Potter if it's a boy and Grace Lily Potter if it's a girl."

Mary looked over her shoulder and watched James and the other guys playing a ball game in the pool. Both his parents had died last year with only a few months in between. He was okay with it now, but it made sense that he wanted keep his parents memory alive as much as possible. After Mary had watched Frank jump on top of Sirius (on purpose), she was about to turn back when she got hit by a sudden attack of sickness.

Over the last few days, Mary had been suffering from several attacks of nausea for no apparent reason. This was the third time that day she was feeling sick. She sighed and slowly turned onto her side while trying to determine whether she was going to have to run to the nearest toilet or not. She met Lily's concerned gaze on the way, who asked carefully: "Feeling nauseated again?"

Mary ignored the worried stares from Brice and Alice and smiled bravely. "Nah, it's nothing. Just twitched a tiny muscle in my back."

"Are you sure?" Lily persisted. "Because you look really pale."

"No really, I'm-"

Mary got interrupted by Brice's sudden shriek. Remus had sneaked up on them from behind and was lifting Brice from her towel. "Remus!" she laughed. "Put me down."

Remus seemed to think this over for a moment before ginning broadly. "I don't think so."

He started to carry Brice to the edge of the pool and she – realizing what he was about to do – cried: "Put me down right now!"

"Nope."

"Don't you dare! I washed my hair just this morning," Brice spluttered, now positively wriggling in an attempt to break free from his grip.

"So?" he shrugged. "Then you'll have to wash it again tonight."

Without another warning, he threw her into the air and – with another shriek and a loud splash – Brice landed in the water. Remus jumped in as well and wanted to give her a kiss when she resurfaced, but she quasi-offended pushed him back while muttering: "That's it mister. You're getting _nothing_ from me tonight."

Which made them all laugh. Mary turned back and – to her relief - noticed the nausea had disappeared. She was about to pick up her magazine, when Sirius dropped down on his stomach next to her, resulting in several drops of water land on the magazine, and her. "Hi beautiful," he whispered in her ear.

Mary shot him a suspicious look. "Don't get it into your thick head to do what Remus just did to Brice."

Sirius chuckled mischievously. "I was going to ask you nicely, but…"

He had reached out to grab her, but she pushed him back. "I mean it, Sirius. I'm not feeling too well…"

A flash of concern crossed his face. "What, feeling sick again?"

"Yeah, it's gone now, but I like to keep it that way."

"Okay," Sirius nodded while tenderly adjusting a strap of her turquoise bikini. He then put his hand over hers and kissed the tip of her nose. Mary smiled and once again admired his stunning looks. His dark hair was partly hanging in front of his eyes, but the rays of sunlight still managed to highlight those mesmerizing golden streaks in his grey eyes.

"Oi Padfoot!"

Mary and Sirius looked up to discover who was disturbing their little moment. It turned out to be Peter, who wanted Sirius to rejoin the guys in the pool. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "D'you mind?"

"No," she replied after giving him a long kiss. "You go and have fun."

"Yes _mum_," he grinned before crawling back up and sprinting towards the pool to jump in with a big splash.

Mary was smiling and shook her head, but the smile faded off her face when she noticed that Lily was still watching her closely. "What?"

"How long have you been out in the sun today?"

"About two hours, why?"

"I would have thought a Healer like yourself knows the answer to that. An overdose on sunlight could be causing your sickness."

"She's right," Alice chimed in. "You could be having a sunstroke."

Mary would have liked to give a cheeky reply but to her own annoyance, she realized that they were right. So instead, she told them she agreed and said she was off reading in the living room of the country house instead.

When she got inside, Mary walked to their bedroom to put on some clothes. She slid on a deep purple Summer dress and after she'd poured herself a glass of lemonade, she flopped down on the couch and picked up the magazine. But then, without warning, another wave of nausea hit her with unheard force. And this time, Mary knew she wasn't going to keep it in. She bolted over to the bathroom. A few minutes later, when she had flushed the toilet and washed her hands, she leaned back against the cool lavatory-wall.

What was going on? Mary knew the symptoms of a sunstroke by heart and was positive that wasn't it. Because although she was feeling nauseated, her pulse rate was normal and she didn't have a headache or muscle cramps. She ran some cold water over her wrists and stared into the mirror while pondering over her condition. Perhaps it was just a flu or the remains of food-poisoning, even though she wouldn't be able to tell where she caught that. It had to be something else. What if…

Mary's eyes shot open. No, that just wasn't possible. They had been so careful… Except that one night, but still… One time couldn't possibly result in… She _had_ to know. Mary hurried to her bedroom, dived into her suitcase to grab her agenda. She nervously flicked the pages while she counted backwards, week for week until she had finally found the date she was looking for. Five weeks…

Mary drummed her fingers on the page. Maybe she was freaking out over nothing; she didn't _have_ to be pregnant. But she knew she had to find out now or she wouldn't be able to sleep at all. She walked over to the kitchen and searched for the herbs she needed. There were Valerian roots, oatstaw and raspberry leaves, but no rosehip. Mary shrugged. It was going to have to do, she'd just have to use a more powerful spell instead. While she was preparing the ointment, Mary crossed her fingers that no one would walk in on her. She'd rather not answer delicate questions if she didn't had to.

Thankfully, no one did and after Mary had cleaned up the mess in the kitchen, she took the bowl of ointment back to her room. She sat down on the floor in front of the bed, put a thick layer of salve on the inside of her right wrist and picked up her wand. After staring at her wrist for another minute, Mary put the tip of her wand on the ointment and sighed: "Well, here goes nothing: _Gravitocernus_.

While she was counting the seconds and waited for the result to show up, Mary thought about the consequences if she turned out to be pregnant. Her father's face sprang to mind, and he didn't look pleased. He wouldn't have anything against becoming parents at a young age (that had also happened to him and her mother), but the fact that she and Sirius weren't married yet could be a problem. And her parents had been very disappointed when they had informed them about why the wedding had to be postponed. Imagine if she had to tell them they'd be grandparents _before_ the actual marriage would take place…

And Sirius… Mary closed her eyes in fear. She knew that he was more than happy to marry her, but becoming a father early on as well? They had discussed the possibility of having children before and Sirius had been very clear about it: yes, he'd love to become a dad _one day_, but certainly not in the next few years. How would he react if she told him she was pregnant? Would he be angry or upset? But she hadn't planned this pregnancy either. Would he believe that? Or would he break up and leave her on her own?

The burning questions made her head swirl. She shook her head. What if she wasn't pregnant after all and was worrying over nothing? She looked at the clock on the wall. Time was up. Mary took a deep breath and wiped off the ointment in one movement.

Her heart stopped. There was a spot on her wrist. It was smaller and perhaps less clear than when she had tested Lily, but an unmistakable blue mark nevertheless. This could only mean one thing. Mary stared at the mirror across the bed. She looked pale, her frizzy hair was standing out in every direction like it was giving a bad imitation of James's hairstyle and her eyes were wide-open and full of shock. She was _pregnant_: a human being was growing inside her at this very moment.

Mary didn't know how long she stared at that mirror, but numerous thoughts crossed her confused mind. From Sirius to the baby to her parents to Fabian reading her hand. Didn't he tell her she'd become a mother after surviving a life-threatening situation? So was this it? She _had_ faced Voldemort after all, although she was rescued by Dumbledore rather than surviving herself like she imagined. _"If your lifeline does continue, you'll become a mother of three children."_ Three Children? Oh Merlin, was she going to have triplets?

"Mary?"

Mary looked up in alarm. Lily was leaning against the doorpost. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine!" she replied while hastily sliding the bowl with ointment under the bed and hiding her wrist behind her back.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she walked in and sat down on the bed.

"Nothing."

Lily arched an eyebrow. "Nothing?"

"No, I eh… I've just finished doing some sit-ups on the floor."

Lily shot her a close look. "Mary, you're possibly the worst liar I have ever seen. I know you and can see that something is bothering you. So what's up?"

Mary hesitated. She knew she was supposed to inform Sirius first, but she needed to talk to someone who wouldn't walk out on her and could give her advice. After all, her friend was eight months pregnant and had already experienced bringing James the exciting news. So Mary hesitantly showed her wrist to Lily. It took her friend a few seconds to realize what was going on. "Why is there a blue spot… Oooh!"

Her hand shot to her mouth. For a moment, she was speechless. At last she whispered: "How long have you known? And does Sirius know…"

Mary showed her the bowl with ointment. "I've only found out myself and I'm completely shocked. And no, he doesn't."

"Well, you have to tell him straight away. I'll go get him for you."

She was already getting up when Mary caught her arm. "No Lil, I don't think that's a good idea."

She flopped back down. "What do you mean?"

Mary sighed. "Sirius won't be pleased about this. And I don't know… I mean, I've only found out myself. I need to get used to the idea before I'll break the news to him."

Lily looked doubtful. "I don't think that will work, Mare. Sirius _knows_ you so well, he's going to put one and two together soon enough."

"But I have to try. I don't want to spoil this holiday for everyone and that's what is going to happen."

"And why is that?"

"Sirius doesn't want children, or at least not yet."

"But this is not your fault…"

"He won't see it that way."

Lily shook her head. "How can you be so sure about that? Remember how afraid I was when I had to tell James? And who was ushering me to tell him anyway? You! And Sirius… He's more mature than you give him credit for. You have to talk to him, and rather sooner than later."

Mary played with her engagement ring and sighed. "I'll tell him when we get home, but not now Lil, I need more time."

She shot her friend a pleading look. Lily was biting her lip while considering Mary's request but at last, she nodded. "Alright, my lips are sealed."

Mary reached over to give her friend a tight hug before pulling her up from the bed. "I think I'll stay here and rest, maybe that'll make me feel better."

Lily nodded and closed the curtains before walking to the door. Or walking, Mary noticed that her friend wasn't moving around quite as gracefully as usual. She snorted and Lily turned around. "What?"

Mary giggled. "You're waddling."

Lily tried to look insulted, but she couldn't hide a smile and her eyes were twinkling when she lifted her chin proudly and said: "I do _not_ waddle."

"Yes, you do," Mary grinned.

"_Fine_," she cried. "I waddle. And in a few months, so will you!"

That future image wiped off the smile on her face rather quickly. Lily winked and closed the door behind her, leaving Mary in the dark room, alone with her thoughts. No one – not even Sirius – disturbed her and she must have slept for hours, because when Mary finally got up from the bed and opened the curtains, it was already dusk. The pool looked deserted, but she could hear laughing voices coming from the courtyard.

Mary put on her flip-flops and walked outside. The evening air felt pleasantly warm and sweltering, with just the faintest smell of lavender in the air. She inhaled deeply and realized she was no longer nauseous. But then again, it was evening and she had already had her fair share of morning sickness for one day. When Mary had reached the others, sitting at large table while enjoying grilled steak, freshly baked bread, salad and several jugs of what looked like sangria, she wanted to sit down between Brice and Lily when Sirius called her. "Hey love, come and sit with me!"

So Mary sat down next to him instead. He smiled at her while reaching for the jug of sangria. "Are you feeling better?"

"Eh… yeah," she replied cheerfully, not wanting to sound like a total nag.

"Some sangria will do you good," he said and poured the mixed wine into her glass.

Mary exchanged a look with Lily before shaking her head. "Just water, thanks."

"Okay, if you're sure… How about some steak, then?"

Mary eyed the heavy-looking piece of meat before exchanging another glance with Lily and shaking her head. "No, I don't think my stomach can handle that. I'll eat a bit of salad instead, okay?"

Sirius shot her a concerned look, but did not press the matter and got back to discussing the new policy of the Chudley Cannons with James and Peter. Meanwhile, Mary hardly listened to Brice talking with Alice and focused on eating her salad, and the effects on her stomach. So far, so good: the lettuce, tomato, peppers and grapes didn't cause any nausea. But to say Mary was enjoying the evening… Not exactly. It was impossible to put her "babythoughts" aside. And after another while, she excused herself and walked to the pool.

Mary considered dangling her feet in the water, but flopped down in the hammock at the other end of the garden in the end. The rocking made her sleepy again… She didn't know how long it had been, but she eventually woke up by Sirius softly nudging her. Mary opened her eyes. "Hi."

"Hey," he said softly. "I've been looking everywhere for you. What's going on?"

Mary stretched her arms and tried to smile. "Nothing. I'm tired, that's all…"

Sirius frowned. He reached for his wand and acciod one of the terrace chairs to sit down. He stared at her with a worried frown and she tried to avoid his intense gaze. At last he said quietly: "Sorry, but I'm not buying that. You've been acting strange all day."

"What!?" Mary flared up, trying to look indignant.

Sirius wasn't impressed. Instead, he took a sip of Firewhiskey as he kept staring at her. "I'm going to ask you again. What is going on?"

"Like I said, I'm just tired-"

"Mary," he interrupted, starting to get annoyed. "Don't make me repeat it again."

"But-"

"Something is bothering you, and if you don't want to tell me about it that's fine. But don't lie to me."

When Mary looked up and met his gaze; she noticed he was looking angry, but even more worried. She thought about what would be the best thing to do. Tell him everything or to keep it a secret? It looked like the jolly atmosphere from the first days had already disappeared and the truth was: Mary did want to get this bumpy secret off her chest. Without quite realizing it, she had pulled a hand through her hair and Sirius looked at it with interest. "What is that?" he asked.

Mary realized he had spotted the blue spot on her wrist and tried to hide it behind her back, but Sirius had already caught it. "Well?" he demanded.

"Eh…" She really didn't have much choice now, did she? Sirius wasn't stupid, he'd soon realize that Lily had been walking around with the same spot after she found out about her pregnancy. "Alright… Just don't get angry with me."

She sat up straight, took his hand and placed it on her wrist. "This spot is there for a reason. It's proof that… well… that I'm pregnant, Sirius."

He was staring at her in shock. His glass had fallen down onto the floor, the whiskey soaking the surrounding dry grass. For seconds (but it felt like hours) he remained quiet and this freaked her out more than anything. Mary could have handled an upset Sirius or even a furious Sirius, but a Sirius who didn't respond at all? It was exactly what she had feared. He did not want, would not want, this child. She pulled her arm away and this movement seemed to bring him back to life. "But… But how? Why? _How_?"

"I don't know…"

"We did everything right..."

"Not always, Sirius."

"Oh really? Name one occasion, then."

"Five weeks ago, the night after Moody's promotion party at the Auror office, remember?"

Sirius rubbed his nose. "Oh, crap. But still, that was one time-"

"And that is all it takes" she whispered, tears shimmering in her eyes. "Look, I understand if you don't want to have anything to do with this baby. I'll take care of everything myself, you won't even know it's alive-"

Sirius stared at her, bemused. "Huh?"

Mary looked annoyed. Had he completely forgotten what he told her before? "You said you don't want children at this point in our relationship."

"I did, yeah," he said in a defensive tone. "But that was before we got engaged, before realizing that I want to grow old with you. Plus, you cannot plan these things in life. I mean, it happened to Lily and James, and they're happier than ever."

"They're married."

Sirius shot her an incredulous look. "And we're engaged. What's the difference?"

"I'd like to see you explain that to my father."

This thought _did_ seem to trouble him slightly, but he recovered quickly and reached for her hand. "I still have to get used to the idea of having a baby, but… Look, maybe this was meant to be."

Mary sniffed and shot him a hopeful look. "Does that mean you're not… you know, leaving me?"

Sirius burst out laughing. "Leave you? Love, I couldn't do that if I tried. That said, the thought of becoming a dad is scaring the crap out of me. But heck, I stil have nine months to get used to the idea, don't I?"

She giggled. "More like eight…"

"Bugger…" He shrugged. "Oh well, I'll manage."

Sirius suddenly jumped up and lifted Mary from the hammock to give her the closest hug in days. "How could you think I would dump you because you got pregnant?"

Mary hugged him back. "I don't know," she whispered into his hair. "It does seem like a ridiculous thought now."

She swung her legs around his waist to give him a long kiss. When they broke apart, Sirius was grinning. "I think the time has come to tell the others that our second future Marauder is on its way."

Mary laughed and tried to get down, but Sirius wouldn't let her. He took her all the way over to the courtyard and – still carrying her – brightly informed everyone they were expecting a child. The response was overwhelming. They both got jumped by the others (most of them were rather tipsy, thanks to the sangria) who were all tumbling over each other to congratulate them. When Mary managed to break free from a particular close embrace from James, she met Lily's gaze who was sitting at the other end of the table. Her friend could very well have mouthed "I told you so" at her (Mary probably would have if the tables were turned), which she didn't, proving once more that Lily really was the best friend a girl could wish for.

End of Update

**A/N: So… That was the big secret. Hope you guys like it! I know I do, hahah. Let me know what you think. Lurking is silver, but leaving comments is gold! -Mara**


	58. In Too Deep

Chapter Fifty-Eight

**Chapter Fifty-Eight**

_Kukulukuu!_

The next morning, Sirius woke up early by the crowing of an overactive rooster. Well early, _much_ too early for his liking. If he was interpreting the redness of the bright light that was shining through the curtains correctly, it wasn't even 7AM. _Kukulukuu!_ Sirius groaned and rubbed his eyes. _Kukulukuu!_ Sirius pulled his pillow over his ears. _Kukulukuu!_ Alright, that was the limit – that bird was going down.

Sirius swung his legs out of bed. His head was starting to protest at once, throbbing painfully with every move he made. That last jug of sangria had clearly been one too many… And didn't Remus insist on adding some tequila in the end? Sirius made a silent vow to never _ever_ as much as touch an alcoholic drink again.

He had reached the window and opened the curtain. One glance at the large clock on the church spire of the chapel in the village told him that it was twenty past six. _Kukulukuu!_ Sirius growled and grabbed an old and ugly vase that was standing on the window-still. It seemed like the sound was coming from the large field next to the house. When the rooster crowed again (_Kukulukuu!_), Sirius took careful aim before chucking the vase outside as hard as he could.

_CRASH!_

The rooster instantly stopped crowing. Sirius listened intently for another minute to see if the animal would change his mind as soon as he had turned his back, but it did not break the silence again. Sirius suddenly realized the vase might have actually hit the cock. He chuckled. In that case, they would be having grilled rooster for dinner tonight. He reached for his wand to cast _Accio_ on the remains of the vase. _"Reparo,"_ he muttered, and the broken pieces flew back together.

When Sirius had put back the vase on the window-still and closed the curtains, he turned around to get back to bed. He paused when his gaze fell on Mary. She was still peacefully asleep, the crowing of the rooster hadn't caused her to wake up. Then again, Sirius thought to himself, Mary had always been the better sleeper of the two of them.

Mary truly was a sleeping beauty. It amazed Sirius that she could still look this stunning when she was feeling nauseous all the time. No wonder he hadn't figured out she was pregnant on his own. The sudden thought of the pregnancy flipped his stomach around. He was still having trouble to grasp that he and Mary would become parents within a year. He wasn't sure if he was that happy about the development as he had made it seem, although he would never tell her that.

Sirius sighed and let himself drop down onto the bed. This movement caused Mary to turn around. She moaned softly as she faced him by turning onto her side, accidentally lifting up part of her slip dress in the process. Sirius turned towards her and studied her pretty face. She was carrying his baby. How could this happen? Well, he knew how _it_ happened, that was not the point, but he never expected her to actually end up pregnant. Pregnancies was something they would deal with later on in their lives, when the war was over and peace had returned to their world.

And yet… Sirius softly ran his finger across the lower part of Mary's stomach. Something was growing inside her at this very moment. Something that one day would become a child. _His_ child. A person he and Mary had created together. He realized this thought would make many men blissfully happy, but right now, he was not one of them. Most of the time, he didn't even know how to handle situations, so how in Merlin's name was he supposed to raise another human being?

Sirius knew he would never follow his own fathers example, but what if he would be a complete failure as a dad? Perhaps he should talk to Mr. Woods about this one day. Perhaps his father-in-law would be able to ease his worries. That is, _if_ he was still welcome in their home now he had "knocked up" their oldest daughter before marrying her. Sirius groaned and massaged his temples. He would have to deal with that later. First, his aching head was in desperate need of some breakfast and a cup of strong coffee.

When Sirius entered the kitchen, he turned out to be not the only one who was awake. James was already there, and his annoyingly cheerful whistling indicated that his friend was not, like Sirius, suffering from a severe hangover. His suspicions were confirmed when James spotted him and grinned broadly. "Good morning."

Sirius half-heartedly raised a hand as a reply and strolled over to the sink to pour himself a cup of coffee. "Aren't we bright and shiny at this abominable hour?" He didn't even bother to add milk and took a large gulp. And burned his mouth as a result. Sirius swore and put his cup down on the sink with a loud bang.

James noticed this and lifted an eyebrow. "Hangover?" he asked sympathetically.

Sirius nodded, nursing his burnt palate with his tongue. "It feels like a dozen of garden gnomes are banging on the inside of my skull with their mattocks."

James shot him a long look. "You know what you need, Padfoot?"

"A jinx to knock me unconscious?"

"Breakfast! Sit down and I'll make you some scrambled eggs, Prongs-style."

Sirius sat down on one of the bar stools and put his throbbing head on his arms. "Is that why you don't have a hangover? Because of your ingenious eggs?"

James chuckled and started to mix eggs, milk en chopped tomato's, salt and pepper in a bowl. "Of course! That, and Lil's anti-hangover potion. It works miracles, let me tell you."

Sirius jerked his head up. "Lily has brought along that potion?"

"Yep," James said while pouring the ingredients into a hot frying pan. "I'll get it for you after you had some breakfast. So," he said after he had turned the hob low and turned around. "How are you feeling?"

"Didn't I already say that my head is about to crack?"

"That's not what I'm talking about," James replied as he put down a new cup of coffee in front of Sirius. He crossed his arms. "How are you holding up with everything?"

Sirius looked at James and knew what he was referring to. He shrugged. "Well, you know…"

James frowned and took a sip of coffee. "No, I don't think I do."

"I would be lying if I said it did not surprise me, if that's what you mean."

"It's not about what _I_ mean, we're talking about you."

James kept staring at him and Sirius knew his friend was onto him. He was avoiding his gaze when he said: "It was a surprise, but… a happy one. At least, I think it was… Or that's what I think I'm thinking."

"Oh cut the crap, Sirius!" James called. "You're totally freaking out, any fool could see that." He turned around to pour the scrambled eggs on a plate, added a piece of French bread and put the plate down in front of Sirius. He shot him a stern look. "Mary's vision may be temporarily blurred because she's too busy hanging over a toilet seat all the time, but you better get your act together before her nausea disappears."

Sirius moodily prodded his fork in the scrambled eggs and took a bite. To his surprise, he immediately felt better. "Oh, this _is_ good stuff," he said while hungrily munching on a second bite.

James smiled. "I told you so. But really Padfoot, I meant what I said."

Sirius swallowed a mouthful of bread and sighed. "I know. I don't want to disappoint Mary. And the thing is, it's not that I don't _want_ this. I just don't think I can…"

"You're thinking you won't a good father because your own dad was an ass?"

Sirius couldn't help but snort. Leave it up to James to recap his disastrous relationship with his father in one sentence. But the thing was, James was right; that thought had crossed his mind. "Well, it's not like my youth is the perfect example, now is it?"

His friend sighed. "Sirius, this fear has nothing – or at least not everything – to do with your upbringing. How do you think I felt when Lily told me she was pregnant? Yes, I was happy, but frightened to death all the same. The moments I've thought that I'm going to screw this up are countless. And I probably will a few times, but with a little help from Lily or someone who's already raised kids… I'll learn eventually, I'm sure I will. And so will you."

"Maybe," Sirius said doubtfully. "I considered talking to Mary's dad, but that was before realizing we still have to inform him about the pregnancy."

"Yeah, so?"

"Mary's family has more traditions than mine. And I dare to bet that making a daughter pregnant before the wedding isn't one of them. If Mr. Woods finds out about the pregnancy…"

"He's going to be virulent," James finished the sentence for him. "He might even chase you off his property. But he'll calm down eventually. Don't forget that you guys are engaged, it's not like there isn't going to be a marriage. And when Mary's dad is holding his first grandchild in his arms for the very first time, _I_ dare to bet that will make him the happiest man on the planet."

Sirius remained silent, pondering over what James had said. He knew his friend was right, but for some reason, he was still feeling restless. "But Prongs, I'm only 21. How can I take care of a child when I haven't even sorted out my own life yet?"

"Who has? I haven't slept peacefully in weeks. How in Merlin's name can you raise a kid in the middle of a war?"

"You could emigrate," Sirius suggested as he finished his plate.

James shook his head before saying resolutely: "I will not let Voldemort drive me and my family away from our country."

"That's my lad," Sirius said, chuckling while gettin up to put his plate onto the counter and patting James's shoulder on the way. "And thanks for… you know."

He smiled. "No problem, you're going to be Sirius the super-dad, mind my words. Oh that reminds me, I was meaning to ask you something."

He suddenly looked nervous and Sirius frowned. "What's up?"

"Lily and I have been thinking about our baby's godparents and… Well, we wondered if you want to be the godfather."

Sirius blinked. "Are you serious?"

"I'd never joke over something like this. But would you? You could practice parenthood a bit until your own little one arrives and all."

He laughed. "Well, you'd better be prepared, because I'm going to pamper your kid all the way through!" He gave James a short hug. "I'd love to, mate. Did Lily talk to Mary?"

James bit his lip. "No, and she's not going to, because… We know it's not common, but we want to spread the "godparentship" over the group. So this time, it will be you and Brice. The next one will be Moony and Mary's turn, if they want to of course. And by the time – and if – we ever get to a third child, hopefully Wormtail will have settled down by then. Or else perhaps Frank and Alice… But do you mind if we ask Brice to be the godmother?"

Sirius smiled. "Of course not, she'll be thrilled."

"Do you think Mary will be upset?"

"I'm sure she won't mind. Besides, she's busy enough with her own pregnancy at the moment…"

Sirius hadn't even finished his sentence or they could spot the silhouette of Mary sprinting past the kitchen door, no doubt heading to the bathroom. James shook his head and smiled wryly. "Poor thing… I really don't envy our girls. The idea of Lily having to give birth has been giving me nightmares for weeks. Oh well, you'd better head over there to see if you can hold her hair back or something."

Sirius sighed and walked out of the kitchen to check on Mary. While making his way over to the bathroom, he noticed that his headache had almost disappeared. James's breakfast turned out to be a much better medicine than he had thought. He knocked on the bathroom door. "Mary?"

When she didn't answer, he slowly opened the door. And found Mary sitting on the floor next to the toilet, with one arm around the bowl, her knees pulled up and her head leaning back against the wall. "Hi," she whispered miserably.

Sirius crouched down and looked at her. "How are you feeling?"

He only realized how stupid this question was when he had already asked it, but to his surprise, Mary gave him a weak smile. "You know," she said hoarsely. "Not in my wildest dreams could I have imagined you finding me while I'm hugging a toilet seat."

He laughed and sat down next to her, also pulling up his knees and resting his head against the wall. "May I ventilate that this look is suiting you rather well? If Healing doesn't work out, you could always consider becoming a lavatory attendant."

Despite her nausea, Mary giggled. "Well, at least lavatory attendants look good. I don't, I look like how I feel: like crap."

Sirius put an arm around her and kissed her hair. "That is not true. You look downright hot to me."

She looked at him and tenderly stroke his hair from his face. "You're a liar, but a sweet one at that."

Sirius knew she would never believe him if he told her that he _was_ telling the truth, that she still looked more beautiful than any other girl he could think of. So instead, he smiled and leaned in to kiss her, but she pushed him back. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. I seriously need to brush my teeth first."

Sirius chuckled. "Fine, if you say so."

He tried to get back on his feet when Mary reached for his hand and asked: "How are you feeling by the way?"

He looked back at her. "What do you mean?"

"What happened to your hangover?"

"What hangover?"

Mary raised an eyebrow at him. "The hangover that almost made you kill off an innocent rooster."

He shot her a surprised look. "You were _awake_?"

Mary laughed and attempted to get on her feet. Once Sirius had pulled her up, she said: "That I'm lying still with my eyes closed doesn't necessarily mean that I'm asleep. Or that I cannot feel it when you're stroking my stomach."

Sirius blushed. "I was just…"

Mary looked at him with twinkling eyes. "I know you were. Are you going back to the others? I'll be joining you shortly, right after I've gotten rid of the vomit taste in my mouth."

Sirius pulled a face. "Good idea. I'll be in the kitchen. Do you want a cup of coffee?"

"Just tea, thanks," she called over her shoulder while heading back to their room to get her toothbrush.

When Sirius returned to the kitchen, he noticed that only Peter and Alice were still in bed, everyone else was already up. Frank and Brice were reading the Daily Prophet, that had been delivered by Via Express-owl International this morning. Lily was brewing a special potion on the stove and James was handing a flask of potion to a pale and miserable-looking Remus. He smiled when he spotted Sirius. "And?"

"Much better", Sirius replied cheerfully. "At least for now. How's it going, Moony?"

Remus shot him a dark look. "I'm _never_ drinking alcohol again."

James sniggered. "You say that now. Just drink this potion and you'll feel fine. Here Padfoot, I got you one too."

He tossed a small flask at Sirius, who caught it easily before sitting down next to Remus. "I'm feeling much better already, but still… This couldn't hurt. Ready Moony?"

Remus grinned weakly at him. "Bottoms up, right?"

Sirius grinned back and they downed the little potions at the same time. Immediately, Sirius could a warm glow spreading through his body, taking away any pain or nausea in every part it passed. The potion seemed to have the same effect on Remus, because he didn't look pale anymore and could actually smile again. "Wow, this is amazing. Thanks Prongs."

"Don't thank me," James grinned and pointed at Lily, who was still working on her draft. "Thank her."

Remus smiled and Sirius immediately walked over to Lily to give her the closest her round belly allowed him. "You're a true miracle worker," he whispered in her ear and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Lily blushed fiercely. "It's just an anti-hangover potion, it's not like I saved your lives or anything."

Sirius smirked back. "But it does feel that way. I'm sure Remus agrees." He was heading back to the table when Mary walked in. Her face lit up when their eyes met and after she had wished the others a good morning, she walked over to him to gave him a sweet kiss. Sirius smacked his lips. "Hmm… peppermint."

Mary sat down and grinned. "Told you so."

"How's the nausea, Mary?" Remus asked, looking worried.

"I'm doing okay now. For as long it takes…"

"Still, you now know what is causing the sickness. At least that is something."

Mary exchanged a glance with Sirius and smiled. "I guess so…"

"I have something for you, Mare," Lily said.

"What?" Mary asked. "You know, if you could get me a water, that would be great."

"Yeah ok. Hang on a sec," her friend replied absent-mindedly while continuing to rummage around in the kitchen. Finally, she walked over and put down a glass of brownish sludge on the table. "There you go."

Mary stared at the glass with a look of absolute abomination on her face. "Are you trying to kill me? What _is_ that stuff?"

Lily tried to heave herself onto a bar stool. When she was unsuccessful, James hurried over to help her. "Thank you, honey," Lily smiled at him when she had sat down safely before looking at Mary. "It may look disgusting, but you'll thank me later. Go on, trust me. Now drink that up."

Mary prodded the brownish potion suspiciously. "I'm not drinking _that_," she decided stubbornly, but her fierceness faltered slightly under Lily's stern glare. "At least not until you tell me what it is", she added sheepishly, making Sirius, James, Frank and Remus laugh aloud.

Lily rolled her eyes. "It's a potion, you cow! The key element is powdered ginger, which - as you probably know – is very effective against-"

"-Nausea," Mary concluded.

"Exactly!" Lily cried. "Like you, I was feeling nauseated at the beginning of my pregnancy, so I created this potion. Have one draft each morning and you'll be kissing the nausea goodbye."

"Did you ever consider a career in advertising, Lily?" Sirius asked. "Because that's a pretty amazing slogan."

She laughed and hit him playfully around the head. Meanwhile, Mary had finally decided to drink the potion. Sirius still thought the draft looked fairly disgusting, but apparently it didn't taste as bad as it looked, because Mary didn't spit it out. In fact, when she had finished it, she shot Lily a surprised look. "It tastes like chocolate."

"I know, that's why it's brown."

"Genius… Lil, I mean it. You should put this on the market, it will be an instant hit!"

Lily beamed. "You think so? But did it work?"

Mary nodded. "The heavy feeling on my stomach has disappeared and for some weird reason, I'm feeling hungry for the first time in days."

Sirius jumped up at once. "What do you want?"

"Whatever there's left. I feel like I could eat an elephant."

While Sirius was preparing some breakfast and tried to imitate making James's legendary scrambled eggs, he thought about what he and James had discussed. He was going to be a godfather! The thought of being the godfather of James and Lily's kid made him glow with pride. And even though he knew that James was only joking when he said that Sirius could practice being a (god)dad for the baby, he actually thought this wasn't a bad idea. In about eight months, he would be much better prepared for the _real_ deal. And the matter of Mary's dad, he'd somehow figure out a way to handle that, too.

They spent the rest of the holiday in peace. Thanks to Lily's potion, Mary's nausea had disappeared for good, making their remaining days in France a lot more pleasant. But as always, holidays have to end some day, and eventually they had to travel back home. Contrary to the Provence, the weather in London was damp, wet and a lot colder than they expected. Mary was shivering when she waited for Sirius to open the front door and when they got inside, she hurried upstairs to pull on a warm sweater.

Meanwhile, Sirius had cast _locomotor_ on their suitcases to transport them upstairs. When Mary had frolicked down the stairs and was checking Coco's magically refilling bowls of food and water, Sirius was taking la ook at their mail. There were several owls with bills and one carrying a postcard from Marlene, who was on a holiday in New York with her family. When he was removing the card, his eyes suddenly fell on a grey owl that was sitting on the window-still as if it owned the place. Sirius stiffened. He hadn't seen that owl in years. Was that Nobilis or was he just imagining things? When he reached out to remove the letter that was attached to its talon, the owl shot him a superior look and Sirius's stomach cringed. It couldn't be…

"That's a pretty owl," Mary said, shooting it an admiring look. She was carrying Coco in her arms. When she noticed that the cat was eyeing the owls that had gathered on the window-still hungrily, she held onto it a little tighter. "Who's it from?"

Sirius didn't reply and opened the letter. He only had to take one look at the majestic handwriting to learn everything he needed to know. He subconsciously clenched his fist tightly, crumpling the letter with more force than he intended.

"Sirius?"

He looked up and saw that Mary was shooting him a concerned look. "What's wrong?"

Sirius stared at her and knew that there was no point in lying. She would find out anyway. He sighed. "This," he said as he opened his hand and showed Mary the withered piece of parchment, "is a letter from my mother."

End of Update

**A/N Aiiii cliffhanger… Sorry about that! I hope you liked this chapter anyway. At least I enjoyed writing it, it was nice to give insight on how Sirius is really feeling about becoming a dad so soon. Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by, okay? Thanks! -Mara**


	59. Collision Course

Chapter Fifty-Nine:

**Chapter Fifty-Nine****:**

Mary stared at the crumpled piece of parchment in Sirius's hands. She couldn't believe her ears. A letter from Mrs. Black? Was this Sirius's idea of a bad joke? Mary frowned and shot him a close look, looking for a clue that would confirm her suspicions, but there was nothing mischievous or relaxing about his expression. At last, she could not think of anything else to say than: "What?"

Sirius sighed and fluttered the letter in front of her face. "A letter. From. My mother," he said impatiently before stuffing the note once more.

"What in Merlin's name would she write you about?" Mary asked, feeling confused.

"Beats me," he shrugged indifferently and cast the crumbled parchment over his shoulder, right into the bin.

He was already turning back to sort out the rest of their mail when he noticed that Mary was watching him with an incredulous look on her face. "What?" he asked, a tad annoyed.

"You _are_ going to read that letter, aren't you?"

He looked genuinely surprised. "Why should I?"

"Because, it may be important."

Sirius shot her another surprised look, although Mary could also detect annoyance in his stormy grey eyes. "Even so, I repeat: _why_?"

She continued to stare at him for another moment, not sure on how to handle this situation. She felt the need to persuade him to at least _read_ the note, because she knew he was going to regret it later if he didn't. However, the last thing she wanted was to cross him, because that would have the exact opposite effect. She put Coco down on the ground and walked over to the bin, picked out Mrs. Black's letter and took it back to Sirius. After she had opened and straightened it slightly and placed it on the table, she said softly: "Sirius, I think you should at least take a look at it. You can cast it away again afterwards if you want. Burn it if you will, but please, just read it."

His gaze shifted from the letter to her and Mary could see the aversion in his eyes. He obviously did not want to read the note. But in the end he sighed and picked it up. "Fine, but I'm only doing it for you", he said grudgingly before looking down at the letter.

It wasn't a long message and Sirius had finished reading it in a minute, but to Mary - who was intently studying his face - it could have been ages. Sirius's eyes had become cold and they were narrowing more with every line he read. Mary could almost literally see the shutters behind his eyes coming down again, taking his emotions – that what Sirius was really thinking - to a place where she could not reach them. At last he looked up and put the note back on the table.

When he didn't say anything, Mary cleared her throat and asked carefully: "What did it say?"

"Nothing I did not expect."

"Was it another death threat?"

"Worse. An invitation."

Her mouth fell open. "A _what_?"

"She's inviting us over for tea. Read it for yourself if you have to," he said as he walked towards the kitchen. "Do you want some pumpkin juice?"

"Eh yeah, sure," Mary replied absent-mindedly while hesitantly reaching for the note. Having received a few letters from Sirius's mother at Hogwarts, Mary instantly recognized the classical handwriting. The official Black Family-crest was also on top of the parchment, but this time the message didn't exist of a single sentence concerning a death threat. This note was a more extensive, although it still reminded Mary of the Hogwarts letters she used to get from McGonagall:

_Sirius,_

Due to various unexpected developments, I feel it is my obligatory and ethical duty to invite you and your consort over for afternoon tea. I expect you both at Grimmauld Place, London, on Sunday July 11th at 2PM.

I wish to clarify the importance of your visit. Keep in mind the shame you have brought upon this family by taking the path you have chosen and that, considering what you have done, this gesture should be considered to be very generous. To concede into bringing me and your father one visit is the least you can do.

Kindly return this invitation with a response on whether this date and time is suitable or not.

_Sincerely,  
Walburga Black_

Mary lowered the letter and shot Sirius, who had returned from the kitchen and was now handing her a glass of pumpkin juice, an expectant look. "So what do you think?"

He took a large gulp from his juice, and then another one. "I don't know," he said after another pause. "It's gotten my mother written all over it. I don't think it's a trap."

Mary raised an eyebrow. "A trap?"

"Yeah, a Death Eater or Voldemort could easily fake a letter from a relative of an Order-member. But that final sentence did it, no one but my dear old hag of a mother would end this kind of note like that." He frowned. "Unless she's under the Imperius-curse, that is not _impossible_, of course. Oh well, not that it matters much…"

Sirius was already pointing his wand at the letter when Mary put a hand on his arm. "What are you doing?"

He looked astonished. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

"Sirius… I know you said you never wanted to have anything to do with your parents again, but it's just an afternoon tea. What could it hurt?"

"What could it hurt? You don't know my family, _especially_ my mother. She would never invite you unless she's onto something. You better watch your back carefully for the time being. And as for that tea you mentioned, she's probably poisoning it anyway."

She shook her head. "Your mother is not a murderer."

"You'd be surprised what she's capable of. I won't have you endangering yourself, or…" He hesitated. "Or the baby."

Mary was briefly taken aback by him mentioning their unborn child, but she recovered quickly. "Fine, then I won't drink or eat anything while we're there. But we should go. I mean, look at the letter. Yes, it is impersonal and blunt, but what if your mother has finally realized that you're her only son left and that she wants to give your relationship a second chance, but that she's simply unable to express her true feelings?"

Sirius laughed mirthlessly. "My mother, welcoming me back as her long-lost son? Give me a break."

Mary started to feel frustrated by his impassive behavior. "Don't I have a say in this _at all_?"

Sirius shot her a long look. At last, he shrugged and nodded. "Are you absolutely convinced that we should go?"

"Yes, I do," she replied resolutely. "We'll find out soon enough what she wants from us. And if we don't like what she has to say, we'll leave. It's as simple as that."

Sirius pondered over her words for another minute, drumming his fingers on the table, but then he reached for a quill and scribbled down a reply before attaching the note to Mrs. Black's owl. After they had watched it fly away through the window, Sirius looked at her and said: "I just hope you know what you're doing."

Mary didn't respond at once and stared out of the window. Truth to be told, she wasn't exactly sure if they were doing the right thing by visiting the Blacks, but she couldn't tell him that, not now she had just convinced him to return to Grimmauld Place. Instead, she smiled and reached for his hand. "It'll be fine, I can feel it."

Over the next few days, Sirius and Mary didn't hear anything from Mrs. Black, which – according to him – probably meant that the date of their visit had been confirmed. Mary thought it quite rude for his mother to not send back a confirmation, but Sirius didn't really seem to mind and she decided to not press the matter.

Besides, they were too busy trying to soothe a heavy row between Remus and Brice. When Lily asked Brice to be the godmother of the baby she had declined, stating that she simply wasn't ready for that kind of a responsibility yet. Lily and James admitted they were disappointed, but asserted they respected Brice's decision. Contrary to Remus, who was simply furious with his girlfriend. This was shocking at the very least, because it was rather difficult (if not to say impossible) to cross Remus Lupin. In fact, Mary had always thought it was simply impossible for him to get angry, but when an upset Brice showed up at her doorstep at night, she had to accede that Remus was only human after all.

Mary happened to agree with Remus, though; she also couldn't understand that Brice didn't want to be a godmother for James and Lily's child, but on the other hand, she – whatever the reason may be - had to respect her friend's decision. But the row complicated matters between the group a lot. Remus hadn't been on speaking terms with Brice for days, which resulted in an uncomfortable atmosphere at the Order meetings.

Even though the older members suspected that something was amiss, they didn't know exactly what was going on. One night, a blissfully ignorant Zabini - who had fully recovered from the Internal Bleeding-curse - had accidentally sent Remus, Brice and James on a mission to search for a special map in an old and vacant office in London. James had been positively depressed when he returned to Lily the next morning, after having spent an entire night between a stubbornly taciturn Remus and Brice.

And then there was the case of Mary also turning down the godmother-ship. She had to disappoint James, Lily _and_ a particularly edgy Sirius with pain in her heart. For the one and only reason that she was raised with the idea that it meant bad luck to appoint another godparent if the first choice had turned down the job. But, as she reassured James, in the end it didn't matter much that the baby would not have a godmother, because Sirius would already be the godfather. Should anything happen to James and Lily, she and Sirius would take care of the Potter's child as if it were their own.

With trying to solve matters between Remus and Brice, attending several Order-meetings, working a few double shifts at St. Mungo's and setting up an appointment with an obstetrics Healer (like Lily, Mary had chosen to go a well-known French obstetrician called Juliette Sauvage), the week was flew by and before Mary realized, Sunday morning had arrived. She and Sirius left home early and traveled to his parents house (situated nearby the Borough market of Camden) by tube. It was only the second time that Sirius was taking the subway, and he said he just couldn't understand why Muggles were so keen on traveling on a train that went below the ground. Mary didn't even try to explain what subways were about and quickly changed the subject.

They got out at Camden Town station and after walking for another ten minutes, they were standing in front of – as Sirius put it – the most depressing house in all of London. To Mary however, the house looked old, but well-kept and most of all: eminent. She was looking for a doorbell which didn't seem to be there. Instead, Sirius suddenly leaned over to her and whispered: "Will you come to Grimmauld Place, number 12, London, with me?"

She shot him a confused look. "Aren't we standing right in front of that?"

Sirius smiled mysteriously and cocked his head over to the door. Mary followed his gaze and her mouth dropped. A doorknob had appeared right in front of her. "H-How did you do that?" she stammered.

He shrugged. "This house stands in the middle of the Muggle world. Naturally there have to be some precautionary measures." He snorted. "As if anyone would enter this house if they knew what's inside, but never mind that."

He raised his hand and knocked twice on the heavy wooden door. After a short moment, they could hear several locks opening from the inside. When the door was opening with a loud creak, Sirius sighed and muttered out of the corner of his mouth: "Be prepared", before taking Mary's hand and pulling her along with him.

The door closed with a loud and hollow thud that resounded in the long, high, cold and marble-floored hallway. At first Mary thought the door had been opened and closed by magic, but then she spotted an ancient house-elf stepping from behind the door. He looked unlike any house-elf she had seen. This elf did not look friendly like most of the Hogwarts elves. In fact, its eyes narrowed when his gaze focused on Sirius, who was glaring back with mutual dislike. "Kreacher," he muttered darkly.

The house-elf made an unnecessary generous bow, so deep that its large nose touched the floor, but even Mary could see this humble gesture was insincere. "Young master Sirius," it said solemnly, before inarticulately adding (but not unclear enough for them to understand): "The ungrateful brat that hurt my dear Mistress so much… And now he's bringing this witch along. Dirty little Mudblood she is, Kreacher will not tolerate-"

"Kreacher!" Sirius bellowed. "Go and tell my mother that we have arrived."

"But of course, master," Kreacher said with another deep bow. But as he turned around and shuffled away, he audibly mumbled: "Kreacher does not like the presence of dirty Mudblood in the noble house. And nor does Mistress, Kreacher knows… Oh yes, Kreacher knows…"

When Mary looked at Sirius, she noticed that he had closed his eyes and was grinding his teeth. She knew he was already regretting ever returning to his old home. At last, he opened his eyes and shot her an apologetic look. "You won't believe how sorry I am. That house-elf… He's impossible."

She shrugged. "I admit that he's rude and a bit… deranged and demented, but come on… Consider his upbringing that has lasted for centuries. Wouldn't you?"

Sirius stared at her while shaking his head. "Are you defending Kreacher?"

"Well yes, I mean… If you look at his situation objectively-"

"Stop that, Mary", Sirius interrupted shortly; more abruptly than he intended, because he quickly added: "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. But really, do not defend Kreacher, he doesn't deserve it."

In any other situation Mary would have objected, but right now she decided it was better to keep the peace. So she merely nodded and let her eyes wander around the impressive hallway. She noticed that at the end, next to several old and valuable paintings, there was a remarkably large tapestry placed onto the wall. She walked over to it as silently as possible, but because her high heels were clacking on the marble floor, Sirius noticed anyway. He followed suit and, once he was standing behind her, gently wrapped his arms around her waist. "The official Black Family Tree. I haven't looked at that since I made Regulus believe he would become Minister of Magic if he could touch the very top of the tapestry."

Mary smiled. Her eyes were being drawn to the title of the family tree and the official crest. "Toujours pur…" she whispered.

"Ridiculous, isn't it?"

"But is it true?"

Sirius snorted. "They wish. Do you see all these burned holes? Those used to be the names of wizards and witches, but they got disowned, mostly because they befriended or married Muggles or Muggle-borns. And if I'm not mistaken, then… Yes!"

He had placed his chin on her shoulder and was pointing at a burned hole at the very bottom of the family tree. "That one right there used to be me."

Mary could even detect some pride in his voice. She looked back and asked: "How can you be so sure about that?"

"Because," he replied, grinning. "Regulus is right next to where I should have been. Look."

He was placing his index finger right under the brightly gold embroidered text that said "Regulus Arcturus Black, 1961-1979". Mary stared at Regulus's name and once again remembered how young Sirius's brother was when he had lost his life. Would it have been his death that made Mrs. Black realize she and Sirius were going to have to reconcile their differences? Sirius didn't seem to be worrying about that at the moment. He had let go and was now leaning in so closely that his nose was practically touching the tapestry. "I'll be dammed…"

"What is it?"

"Look at those golden lines linked to where my name used to be. One to the side and one down. I think I already know why my mother has invited us to come. The names may not be on the tapestry yet, because it's not official, but they will be soon and... Well, do you know what I mean?"

Mary slowly looked from the tapestry at him and shot him a puzzled look. "I can't say that I do, sorry."

"I'm thinking that these lines are representing you and the baby. That's got to be it. My mother knows about the engagement and the pregnancy."

"That is correct," a cold female voice suddenly resounded behind them.

End of Update

**A/N Am I evil or **_**what**_**? So sorry –hides behind keyboard- I'll try to update again as soon as possible to make it up, promise! I hope you've enjoyed this little update. Let me know what you think! -Mara**


	60. Meet Mrs Black

Chapter Sixty:

**Chapter Sixty****:**

Mary and Sirius wheeled around and found themselves staring at Mrs. Black, who was standing only a few feet behind them. Mary could instantly see where Sirius and Regulus had gotten their good looks: Mrs. Black was tall, slender and had those handsome and haughty features that seemed to be the trademark of the Blacks. But Mary also noticed something else about her. Sirius's mother was perfectly resembling that middle-aged woman who used to be stunningly beautiful, but had forgotten how to laugh over the years; her eyes was cold and her skin and expression had turned sour and grim. She was looking at them with an unreadable expression in her eyes, and Mary couldn't tell whether to smile at her or run away.

Even Sirius seemed doubtful. He had stepped in front of Mary, unsubconsciously shielding her for any curses Mrs. Black could send at them. Mary was't the only one who noticed this. Mrs. Black narrowed her eyes slightly when she saw him reaching for his wand and said: "Don't be ridiculous, Sirius. I have no intention in hurting you, or _her_."

Sirius didn't move. "So then why did you inv-"

"Follow me," Mrs. Black interrupted him curtly.

She walked off without looking back. After a long moment of silence, Sirius decided to follow her, but not before he had reached for Mary's hand and pulled her along with him. "Make sure you stay behind me at all times, just in case," he whispered urgently.

Mary nodded and followed him while looking around at the house in awe. It was obvious that Grimmauld Place belonged to a very wealthy family. They passed several valuable paintings, vases and statues on the way to the living room. When they finally arrived there, Mrs. Black had sat down on one of the large sofa's and gestured them to do the same. Sirius and Mary walked over to the other side and sat down on the sofa opposite her. Sirius's mother didn't pay any attention to Kreacher, who was polishing a vase on a nearby stand in the back of the room while glowering at them. "Tea?" she asked shortly and completely unnessecary, since she was already waving her wand to conjure a tray with a teapot, cups and a bowl of biscuits on the side. Before Mary could decline politely, Sirius said shortly: "No, we're fine."

Mrs. Black's gaze shifted to Mary. "And your fiancée isn't allowed to speak or decide for herself? My my Sirius, I must say you have trained her well. I suppose those Mudbloods are good for something after all."

Sirius opened his mouth, looking irate, but Mary quickly placed a hand on his knee and smiled. "Really Mrs. Black, this is all very kind, but I am fine."

Mrs. Black shot her one cold look before looking at Sirius. "What did you tell her, that I was going to try and poison her with my tea?"

"Well, wouldn't you?" he asked tightly.

She pursed her lips. "I assume you also already tipped off your friends that you and…," she – apparently unable to call Mary by name – said cocking her head in the direction of Mary, "her… were planning on visiting me?"

"That "her" is my fiancé and has a name," Sirius said, flaring up. "And what if I did?"

"Do you honestly think," Mrs. Black continued as if she hadn't been interurpted by her son, "that I would hand you over to the Death Eaters or even hurt you myself when I know that your friends are fully aware of this visit?"

"There is nothing you could do that would surprise me anymore."

Mrs. Black gave a tinkling but unpleasant laugh that sent shivers down Mary's spine. "Please," she said while rolling her eyes before picking up one of the cups and offerering it to Mary. "Go on. I'm drinking it too, and I've invited you over for afternoon _tea_ after all."

Mary hesitated. She felt more or less compelled to accept the tea, but she also hadn't forgotten Sirius's warning. The last thing she wanted was to jeopordize her life or that of her unborn child. She exchanged a quick glance with Sirius, who – barely noticeable to anyone but her – shook his head, before smiling at Mrs. Black once more. "I'm sorry, but too much tea is making me feel nauseated and since I already had two cups this morning, I just-"

"Have some coffee instead, then."

"Eh no, thank you."

"Water?"

"Really, Mrs. Black, I'm f-"

"You know, as a Healer you are supposed to be aware that pregnant women need to drink a lot."

Mary felt taken aback by Sirius's mother adressing the pregnancy so directly, but this didn't seem to be affecting Sirius at all. He scowled. "Right, like you give a damn about what happens to this baby."

Mrs. Black ignored Sirius's last sneer and continued to look at Mary. "Pregnant women should avoid becoming dehydrated at all times."

Mary cleared her throat. "I know that. We have special potions that keep you hydrated throughout the day."

Mrs. Black sipped her own tea and shot her a close look. When she had put the cup back down, she attempted to smile, which - in her case - didn't just look uncomfortable, but rather terrifying. "Speaking of this… pregnancy," she spoke slowly and softly, her gaze never leaving Mary, "is that common in your world, to be with child before the wedding has taken place?"

Mary felt herself reddening fast and Mrs. Black noticed; the corners of her mouth were curling up into an unpleasant smile. "Do your parents even know?"

When Mary shook her head, she chuckled. "Of course not. Better share the happy news sooner than later, darling. That growing belly will spoil the surprise eventually. But do you have any idea what we called a girl in your situation back in my day? A trollop."

That last sneer had been the limit for Mary. She did _not_ deserve to be treated like this by anyone, let alone her mother-in-law. She had just opened her mouth to say that when Sirius beat her to it. His eyes were glinting dangerously and his jaw was clenched when he said through gritted teeth: "Mother, that's enough! If you have nothing to say but meaningless insults, we are leaving right now."

He was already getting to his feet and pulling Mary up when Mrs. Black raised a hand and said: "Wait. There… There is something else."

Sirius shot his mother a long look but at last, he flopped back down on the sofa. "What is it?" he asked grudgingly.

Mrs. Black looked back at Kreacher. "Leave us", she said and waited until the house-elf had left the room, ignoring its muttering about "the return of the ungrateful young brat and his Mudblood girl". Instead, she refilled her cup before she finally said: "Your father."

Sirius shrugged. "Oh yeah, I haven't seen him anywhere. What happened to that old tyran?"

"He is not well."

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

She sighed and put her cup back on the table. "Your father is ill, Sirius. He has been sick over the last year, even before Regulus was taken from us. Needless to say the loss of his son did not improve his condition."

Mary was shocked to hear Mrs. Black referring to Regulus as their only child while Sirius was sitting right in front of her, but he didn't seem to bothered by that. He merely shrugged and replied: "Why not taking him to St.Mungo's?"

His mother lifted her chin proudly and shot him a cold look. "You know as well as I do that that's not a possibility."

"What?" Sirius frowned before putting one and two together. "Of course…" he muttered. "The Healing powers of the Medi-Wizards at St. Mungo's are way beneath the standards of the Black family."

"Which is why we had the best Healers in the country coming over to take care of your father."

"And yet he's still sick," Sirius observed coolly. "Odd how that sometimes happens."

Mrs. Black pursed her lips. "It's rather indelicat how you talk about your father, Sirius. If it weren't for him, you'd be-"

"A lot happier," Sirius snarled. "Yes, we know that. But this still doesn't explain why…" He suddenly looked from his mother to Mary and back. "Ah," he nodded. "You need Mary to examine him."

Mrs. Black nodded. "You must understand that this would be simply impossible if your father was awake. To be touched by a Mudbl- Muggle-born witch would be unbearable for him. As it is, he has been asleep for almost an entire week and I'm getting rather desperate. And… Well, I have been told you're one of the most promising Healers at the hospital."

"But…" Mary stammered. "I am specialized in Spell Damage. I'm sorry, but I'm not by far fully trained to Heal any Magical Maladies."

"But you _have_ been trained in that area, am I correct?"

Mary sighed. "Technically yes, but I wouldn't consider myself able to-"

"I suggest you at least give it a try," Mrs. Black pressed. "Isn't that what you Healers are bound to do? The bedroom can be found across the hall, first room to your right."

After another staggering moment of silence, Mary slowly got to her feet. However, before she could have walked away, Sirius grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her down to him. "What do you think you're doing?"

She bit her lip before whispering: "Sirius, he's your _father_…"

"Who hates my guts, who would have handed you over to Voldemort without blinking once if he were awake. Frankly, I bet he'll still die out of shock when he discovers it was you who cured him."

Mary sighed. "I have to see what I can do, I've vowed to Heal everyone – even Voldemort – if I can. Besides, this will give you a moment to talk with your mother alone."

Sirius sighed impatiently. "Just get back here as soon as you can so that we can leave. Before I'll commit a murder I know I won't even regret when I'm well locked up in Azkaban."

She shot him a reproachful look. "You shouldn't joke around over things like that, Sirius."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever. Just don't take too long."

Mary let go of his hand and – after giving Mrs. Black a polite nod – walked out of the living room. It didn't take her long to find the bedroom; the door was standing wide-open. She considered closing it behind her, but this way, she was able to follow the conversation between Sirius and his mother while examining his father.

It only took her one look to realize Sirius's father was more dead than alive. He looked very sick, if not to say mortally ill. He had lost a lot of weight in a short amount of time. His face looked gaunt and pale and although he was shivering under the thick layer of blankets, there were still pearls of sweat rolling down his temples. When Mary had reached for her wand and was casting a few ordinary Defevering Charms on him, she could suddenly hear the cold voice of Sirius's mother coming from the living room. Mary froze because she expected her to appear in the doorway, but then she realized that she wasn't talking to her, but telling off Sirius for getting attached to Muggle-borns and Albus Dumbledore.

This did not seem to intimidate Sirius, because Mary heard him reply in an irresponse voice: "Yes, I know all too well how you feel about that. As for me, running away was the best decision I ever made."

"But… that girl", Mrs. Black insisted. "How can you be with someone like _her_? Have you learnt nothing from what your father and I taught you?"

"Nothing I plan to live up to."

"You're only marrying her to spite me," she hissed viciously. "To bring even more shame to this family, to-"

"Shut up!" he yelled. "First of all, I don't give a damn about what this family thinks and even if I did, when will you people get it into your thick heads that it's about people's personalities, not their ancestries."

"_She_ is beneath your standards in so many ways. I would have thought you to come to your senses sooner or later, but she must have put you under some sort of spell."

Mary would have liked to hear Sirius's response to that sneer, but unfortunately, this was the time that Mr. Black started to cough and rasp very loudly. Mary closed the door with her foot – in case Mrs. Black thought she was kiling her husband instead of curing him – and quickly cast a charm with a calming effect on his throat and lungs.

Mr. Black stopped rasping and slept on peacefully. For a moment, Mary wasn't sure about what to do next, but then she reasoned that in order to Heal, she needed to know what was wrong first. She suspected there was something wrong with his liver, considering the white of his eyes was yellowish and even his skin seemed to have a yellow tinge. She pulled back the sheets, pointed her wand at his stomach and muttered: "_Haruspicicorpus._"

This spell was often used on patients in St.Mungo's. It was comparable to a Muggle x-ray, because it allowed Healers to literally take a look inside a patient's body. And from judging on what Mary was seeing, Mr. Black's prognosis didn't look good. She had been right: he was suffering from liver failure and would die soon if nothing was done about it.

She had to act quickly. Mary stuffed her wand inside her robes, put the sheets back in place and opened the door to warn Mrs. Black and Sirius, but she had momentarily forgotten about their argument. It still hadn't come to an end. On the contrary, they were now bickering about Regulus's death. "You have been poisoning his mind ever since he was a little boy," Sirius said.

"Regulus did what he had to do to make his family proud."

He scowled. "By doing what? Joining the ranks of Voldemort?"

Mrs. Black stiffened. "How dare you call that name in my house!"

"I can't see why not. You were always supporting his beliefs, why deny that now? And besides, it's your dear "Dark Lord" who caused Reg's death."

"That is _not_ true."

"Oh believe me," Sirius sneered. "Regulus came to _me_ the night prior to his death. I know a lot more about what really happened than you do."

Mrs. Black narrowed her eyes and said sharply: "Were you involved in killing your own brother?"

"No, I would have helped him leaving everything behind. Getting away from you, mostly."

"What are you talking about? Regulus always loved coming here."

"Sure," Sirius gloated. "That's why he chose to ask me for help instead of you. Yes, that really makes sense to me."

She sniffed. "I can hardly bear the fact that I have lost my only son."

"Yeah well, serves you right, that's all I can say."

"I wish it would have been you…"

Silence.

Mary could not believe her ears and apparently even Sirius did not expect his mother to say something direct like this. Mary closed her eyes. How could any mother tell her child she wished him dead? She got struck by an immense sense of guilt. It had been her who pushed Sirius to visit his mother, even though he explicitly said that he didn't want to. This was her fault…

Mary crossed the hall and walked to the living room, trying to make it look that she didn't hear anything. She paused in the doorway and looked at Mrs. Black and Sirius, who were standing on either side of the table, glaring at each other. Mary didn't know what else to do than to clear her throat. They both looked up and Sirius immediately walked over to her. His face looked grim and his normally grey eyes were dark and glinting dangerously. He grabbed her roughly by the arm and turned back in the doorway. "There is nothing left to say. I wish I could say that I hope you and father will be happy together, but I don't."

Sirius pulled Mary along with him, but she held him back. "Wait. Mrs. Black?"

Sirius's mother slowly turned towards her, an unreadable expression in her eyes. "Yes?"

"Your husband… He eh… He is suffering from liver failure, an illness that is called cirrhosis."

"Yes," she answered indifferently. "That is what the other Healers said as well. They advised me to take him to the nearest hospital, but clearly-" she laughed drearily "-_that_ is not an option."

"But Mrs. Black," Mary persisted, trying hard to ignore Sirius's impatient sighs. "The cirrhosis is in an advanced stage. If you do nothing now, he will die. And not within months or weeks, but in days."

"I see." Mrs. Black smiled sadly and oddly enough, this one actually seemed sincere. "Yet I have to respect my husbands wishes, so I suppose that means I'll be organizing another funeral soon."

"I'm afraid so," Mary replied before bowing her head and hesitantly adding: "I am sorry."

"We're leaving, Mary," Sirius interrupted shortly.

He was already turning around when Mrs. Black snapped: "Sirius Black, if you close that door behind you, I swear you will _never_ set foot in this house again as long as I shall live."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Like I would ever even _consider_ coming back here again."

He slammed the door of the living door shut with force and marched towards the front door. Mary followed him and tried to keep up with his pace, but she doubted he was even aware she was walking next to him. Right when he was magically unlocking and opening the front door, Mrs. Black appeared behind them and whispered: "You are no son of mine."

Sirius had already pushed Mary outside and was now pausing in the doorway to shoot his mother one last look. "Glad to see we at least agree on that."

He dropped the door behind him, which closed with a loud and conclusive thud. Sirius stalked off in the opposite direction of where they came from, ignoring Mary – who was waiting for him on the other side of the street – completely. Even though she knew Sirius was upset, she did run after him. When she had finally caught up, she reached for his hand. "Hey, wait up."

"Don't Mary," Sirius said dismissively and he pulled his hand away from hers.

She stopped walking. "Sirius please! I'm sor-"

He had turned back and was placing his hands on her shoulders to hold her back. "Don't," he repeated angrily. "Leave me alone. Just… don't."

He pushed her away and stalked off, leaving Mary once again behind in the deserted street, but this time she did not follow him. Not because she didn't want to help or comfort him, but because she understood that he could not stand looking at her right now. It had been right there in his eyes: he was blaming her for what happened. And the thing was, Mary agreed with him: how could she have been so stupid to believe that Sirius's mother wanted to end their fight? Mary had practically forced Sirius into this visit and now he was suffering because of something she wanted him to do. He had every right to be angry with her. All she could do was hoping that one day he would be able to forgive her.

End of Update

**A/N ****This update took me longer than I thought... Mrs. Black was particularly tough to write, I had a pretty hard time on getting her "right" (plausible). At one time she reminded me of an over the top Cruella de Ville-character, haha. Oh well, I hope I managed to make her believable in the end. I hope you liked this chapter (no cliffie!). Let me know what you think, so R&R. Thanks! -Mara**


	61. The Blame Game

Chapter Sixty-One:

**Chapter Sixty-One**:

Sirius didn't come home all day. It wasn't like Mary had expected him to be waiting for her at their place when she got there, because she realized he needed time alone to cool off. But Sirius didn't come back after an hour of waiting, or two. In fact, he didn't came home at all that afternoon and when he also didn't show up for dinner, Mary was starting to feel concerned. She fidgeted with the sleeves of her shirt while pacing around the kitchen, not really paying attention to the vegetables she was cooking. What if Sirius had done something really stupid, like going back to Grimmauld Place and killing his mother?

Mary paused. Okay, that was ridiculous. Sirius was not capable of killing another human being, and even though he loathed his mother, he would never physically hurt her. Or would he…? Mary vehemently shook her head. No, of course he wouldn't. This realization left her wondering what could have happened instead.

Her stomach suddenly cringed with fear. What if Death Eaters had attacked or abducted him? Mary knew that that was an unlikely scenario. However, it wasn't _im_possible either. She had expected him to go to one of the other Marauders, but still… What if something had happened and he would have been seriously injured – or worse – at this very moment?

A loud bubbling sound pulled her mind back to the present. She looked up and noticed that the saucepan was boiling over. Mary quickly turned off the hob and stirred the water that was left in the pan to check on the damage done: her broccoli had turned into a crumbling green sludge. "Freaking fantastic…," she muttered to herself and sighed. She was too worried about Sirius to eat anyway. Where _was_ he? Mary was drumming her fingers on the sink when she decided that she had to find out no matter what. She waved her wand around to clean up the mess in the kitchen, grabbed an apple from the bowl on the table – just so she had something in her stomach for the baby – and prepared to apparate to Remus.

When she arrived at his place in East London, he didn't seem to be home. Mary frowned and knocked on his door for the third time. As far as she knew, Remus didn't have any plans to go out that night and it wasn't full moon yet. After knocking for the fourth time, Mary shrugged and reasoned he could be visiting Brice to work things out together. She sincerely hoped he was: their argument had not exactly improved the atmosphere in the Order.

Thankfully, Peter _was_ at home, but he said he hadn't seen Sirius. He did attempt to soothe her concerns, stating that Sirius was a big lad who probably just needed some time on his own. Frank and Alice hadn't seen him either, but they advised her to go home and wait for him to show up there later that night. Mary promised she would, after she had gone to James and Lily. Contrary to Remus, James opened the door after just one soft knock. He looked a little surprised to see her. "Mary! Did you plan to meet up with Lily?"

Mary shook her head while walking inside and James closed the door behind her. "No, Lily doesn't know I'm here. It's Sirius."

His brow furrowed. "What about him?"

"Eh…" she started hesitantly, wondering how much James knew about their visit to Mrs. Black. "We went to visit his mother earlier…"

"Ah, that was today," James nodded grimly. "He told me about that. So… How disastrous did it get?" he asked while ushering her to walk to the living room.

"Well," Mary replied as she flopped down on the sofa. "To be honest, it was a complete catastrophe."

James sighed and conjured two glasses of soda out of thin air and placed them on the table. "Exactly like Sirius had feared, then."

Another wave of guilt rushed over Mary and she swallowed with difficulty. "Yeah, he… well, where is Lily?" she asked, suddenly changing the subject.

"Upstairs, taking a nap," James replied before shooting her a close look. "Come on, Mary. I can see something is going on. What happened?"

Mary sighed. "Well, we got there thinking we needed to inform her about the pregnancy, but turns out she already knew."

"What? How is that even possible?"

"Because of the tapestry. You know, that large family tree on the wall? Apparently that thing is able to update itself."

James shot her a blank look and Mary frowned. "You don't know?"

He snorted. "You have been _inside_ Grimmauld Place, that's a lot further than I ever got. I, as a Pureblood coming from a Muggle-born befriending family, have never been welcome in that house."

"Well, it wasn't like I was actually being welcomed into their home. Mrs. Black only needed us so I could examine her husband, who happens to be mortally ill. But that's not the worst thing. While I was looking after Sirius's father, I overheard their argument and Mrs. Black… She wished him dead. She literally said she wished he would have been killed instead of Regulus."

James swore and growled. "That bloody hag. I knew it was a mistake to go there from the beginning, I just knew it. Where is Sirius now?"

Mary bit her lip and whispered: "That's what I came to ask you."

"You mean…"

"He stormed off as soon as we left Grimmauld Place and I haven't seen him since," Mary finished nervously while biting one of her fingernails.

James shot her a significant look before he said softly: "Mary, I know what it is you're thinking, but this isn't your fault."

"It is!" she cried. "_I_ forced him into going there."

"Mary," James repeated and he put a hand on her arm. "There is no way you could know something like this would happen."

"But-"

"-Your intentions were good. Padfoot knows that."

Mary sighed. "But he just disappeared. Merlin knows where he went off to. I mean, if he ran in on people from the Dark side…"

James smiled wryly. "Personally I'd pity any Death Eater that comes across Sirius in his current state."

A small smile crept over her face. James's words were making her feel a little bit better. "So you're sure…?"

"Oh yeah, he knows he's better off without his horrible family anyway, and-"

"Mary?"

A drowsy-looking Lily was standing in the doorway, shooting her a surprised look. "What are you doing here?"

Mary exchanged a look with James, who - barely noticcable - shook his head, meaning he didn't want to concern Lily with anything, so she merely smiled at her friend. "I'm just returning a book I borrowed from James, but never mind that. How's our favorite mum-to-be feeling?"

"Exhausted," Lily mumbled while carefully lowering herself into one of the arm chairs. "I'm so fed up with this pregnancy. I cannot sit down, lay back: everything aches. Seriously, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually looking forward to the delivery."

Mary smiled. "When was your last appointment with Sauvage?"

"The day before yesterday. But ever since last night, my belly has started to feel very firm. You know, rather solid actually. Would you mind taking a look?"

She was already lifting her shirt, but Mary looked doubtful. "I don't know, Lil… It's not my specialty, you know that."

"Still," her friend persisted. "It would make me feel better if you take a look. Please?"

"Alright," Mary shrugged and got up to kneel down before Lily. James had also walked over and bent down to follow the examination from up close. Mary gently put her hands on Lily's stomach and concluded that it did feel quite hard. "You were right about the hardness."

Lily shot her a concerned look. "Doesn't that mean that I will go into labour very soon?"

"Could be," Mary replied. "But not necessarily. I'm no obstetrician Healer but if I'm not mistaken, this simply means the baby is preparing itself for the birth. But it very well could take another week – or more - before you will go into labour."

Lily smiled. "Thanks. That _does_ put my mind at ease a little."

Mary shot her a look. "Again, keep in mind that this is not my specialism. You should send an owl to Sauvage in the morning, just to be sure. Anyway, I should be heading home."

She shot a significant look at James, who nodded. "Better hurry. The weather report said there will be several heavy thunderstorms tonight."

Mary gave Lily a quick hug and crawled back up. "Take care," she said softly.

She turned to leave, but Lily grabbed her hand. "Wait, now that you're here… I prepared some more anti-nausea potions this morning. You should take them with you right now, just in case."

James hurried off to the kitchen to get the bag of potion flasks and Mary hugged her again. "Thanks Lil, you're the best."

She grinned. "I'm just glad the draft is effective."

Mary smiled back and waited for James to return. When he finally got back and handed her the bag, she hugged him too and kissed his cheek. He hugged her back and whispered in her ear: "Don't worry, Padfoot is simply incapable to stay angry at you long."

"Thanks," Mary whispered back before letting go and disapparating to her home. She couldn't say she was surprised to return to an empty house. She decided to make herself a cup of tea to take her mind off things. While she was boiling the water with her wand, she peeked outside the window and noticed the dim sky had turned purple: a clear indication that the thunderstorm was about to begin. And indeed, only a few minutes later, a bright flash lit up the candle lit room, followed by a rumbling thunder. It didn't take much longer before it also started to rain: and it wasn't just drizzling, but lierally pouring with rain. Countless drops of water were loudly tapping on the roof and the strong wind lashed against the windows.

Not that this mattered much to Mary: all she could think about was Sirius and how he was roaming around in the pouring rain. Or would he have found some shelter in a distant shed? After another hour, the rain storm was still blazing around the house and Mary was getting tired. She would have to get up early for work the next day and knew she needed her sleep. Despite her worrying, Mary picked up a snoozing Coco from a kitchen chair and carried the cat upstairs: she knew Coco liked sleeping at the end of the bed and – with Sirius out – she could use the company.

When Mary had brushed her teeth, undressed herself and was about to get into bed, she considered warning Albus. After all, Sirius had been away since the afternoon and could be in mortal danger… But then she remembered the advice from her friends: Sirius was an adult who could take care of his own. So instead, Mary stepped into bed and closed her eyes, but she – not very surprisingly – had trouble falling asleep. After another few hours of worrying, right when she actually started to feel a little drowsy, the front door was being slammed shut.

Mary jumped out of bed at once, put on Sirius's bathing wrap over her slipdress and hurried down the stairs. Sirius was standing in the middle of the room. He seemed unharmed, but was soaking wet and he stared at the wall as if he wasn't quite realizing where he was and what he was doing here. Mary shot one look at him, turned around and ran back upstairs to collect some dry clothing: boxers, T-shirt, sweatpants, sweater and a large fluffy towel. When she returned to the living room, Sirius had flopped down on the couch. He was still staring at the opposite wall with an expressionless look on his face. Mary carefully approached him and kneeled down in front of him when she had put the clothes on the ground. "Sirius?"

He shot her a blank look. "Hum?"

"Sweetie, where have you been?"

He did not reply and slowly turned his gaze back to the wall. She sighed and reached for the towel. "Come on, let's get you out of these wet clothes."

Sirius didn't object when Mary was pulling off his soaked shirt and pants. She noticed he was shivering badly and she used the towel to dry him off. It was only then that he came back to life, pulling the towel out of her hands with an annoyed look on his face. "What do you take me for, a child?"

He continued to dry himself off while Mary was watching him closely, trying to determine what was going on inside his head. Once again she regretted that she never mastered Legillimency. "Sirius…" she repeated. "Where have you been?"

He rolled his eyes at her. "Going for a swim in the Thames. What does it look like where I've been?"

"Come on Sirius, this is not fair."

"Well, tough luck," he snapped at her.

Mary blinked. She hadn't seen him like this for a long time, not since Regulus's death. She got to her feetand crossed her arms. "Will you stop biting my head off? I'm only trying to be nice," she replied. "I've been worrying sick about you. I went to everyone to check if you had gone to one of them. I came _this_ close to alerting Albus."

He frowned. "Why would you do that?"

"Why? _Why?!_" she replied shrilly. "Because I bloody care, you prat! Merlin knows what could have happened out there-"

"-I'm all grown up, Mary, I can take care of myself, just like I have been doing ever since I was sixt-"

"-You were alone at sixteen! You're not alone anymore. Sirius, you're the single most important person in my life. I love you and I wouldn't know what to do if something happened to you!"

Her voice broke and Mary clapped her hands in front of her face while dropping down to her knees. She wasn't sure why she was blurting out these things. Were these the infamous pregnancy hormones Healer Sauvage was talking about? Sirius seemed to be as confused as she was, if not more. "What… What's wrong with you?" he stammered.

Mary sniffed. "Don't look at me like I'm a lunatic. You're the one who vanished without a trace."

"I had every reason to-"

"-Yes, you did. But can't you see this has been nerve-racking for me?"

He shrugged. "I suppose so."

"Something horrible very well _could_ have happened. And Merlin Sirius, if you died… I don't want to end up raising this child on my own."

She gave another loud sob and avoided his confused gaze. At last he leaned forward to tenderly place his hands around her neck: his nose was practically touching hers while a few drops of water from his wet hair rolled down her forehead and cheeks, alloying slightly with her own tears. "What are you talking about?" he asked softly.

"I said I don't want to raise-"

"I heard what you said. I meant that what you said doesn't make any sense. I'll never leave you, alright?"

"You could die."

"So could you."

Mary looked into his sincere eyes and didn't spot any anger in them, only love and concern. She decided that it would be safe to apologize. "I know you don't want to hear this, but about today: I'm so, _so_ incredibly sorry."

Sirius leaned back and closed his eyes as he wiped his wet hair out from his face. "You're not to blame," he muttered after a long pause.

"It was me who forced you into visiting your mother."

"And I listened to you, even though I knew I shouldn't."

"But when we left Grimmauld Place, you were furious. You pushed me away."

"I wasn't mad at you. I was angry with myself."

Mary shot him a bemused look. "Why?"

Sirius sighed and sat up straight. He put his elbows on his knees and massaged his temples for a moment. "Because even though it was just for a second, I made myself believe that she actually could have changed," he said at last.

Mary suddenly felt so much compassion for him that it felt like a sharp piece of glass was being stabbed through her heart. "Oh Sirius…"

"Of course," he muttered. "The second she opened her mouth, I knew she was up to something else."

Mary did not reply. Instead, she put her hands on his cheeks and kissed the remaining drops of water from his face. "At least you'll never have to see her again," she said quietly before adding: "Unless you're planning to go to your fathers funeral."

Sirius smiled sadly at her. "I don't think so, no."

Mary worked her way down his neck while stroking his hair and she could feel him relax slightly in her hands. "I love you."

He replied by softly kissing her collarbone and stroking her stomach. "Love you too," he mumbled against her skin.

She reached for his hand. "You still have time to think about your father's funeral, but for now, it's time to get some sleep. Will you come to bed with me?"

The faintest flash of a grin crossed his tired face and he got up. "When did I ever turn down such an invitation?"

Mary grinned back, feeling relieved that Sirius was doing okay, that he wasn't angry with her and most of all: that he had returned home safely and unharmed. She softly pinched his hand while they were climbing the stairs together. "The minute you refuse a proposal like that, _that's_ when I'll really start to get concerned."

End of Update

**A/N A little teaser of what is coming in the next chapter:**

_**Sirius walked over to give her a hug and a kiss. "Good morning," he whispered. "Have you seen them?"**_

"Only when James brought her in," Mary nodded. She smiled. "You should have seen him. His hair was standing out even more than usual. And Lily… She looked excited, determined and terrified at the same time."

**And now you can all guess what this is about. Ten points and free Cauldron Cakes for everyone who gets it right! Oh, and don't forget to leave a comment. Reviews make me happy. Thanks! -Mara**


	62. Code Blue

Chapter Sixty-Two

**Chapter Sixty-Two**

Only five days later, Sirius found out his father died. Not that Mrs. Black had sent them a funeral card which announced his fathers death and the time and place of the funeral, because she hadn't. Instead, Sirius had to find out by reading the offical announcement in the Daily Prophet. Mary had warned him that without any medical help, Mr. Black would be dead within a week, and her prognosis turned out to be correct.

Sirius noticed Mary found it hard to define whether or not she should comfort him, but he quickly resolved this dilemma by stating he couldn't care less about his fathers death and that he wasn't even thinking of going to the funeral. And he meant it. Sirius absolutely loathed his mother, but he could still get angry with her, whereas his dad was unable to upset or anger him at all.

Ever since Sirius had left his family at the age of sixteen, he had successfully blocked his tirannic father out of his life and heart. The fact that his dad was dead did not upset him, nor did it make him feel happy. But he did, in a way, feel relieved: Orion Black had been a heartless and dictatorial man with ridiculous beliefs. The world was a much better place without him and Sirius would rather die himself than attending a funeral to honour a man who wished to replace House-Elfs with Muggle-borns, should that be more convenient.

Sirius focused on his work at the Ministry and in the Order instead. Zabini was convinced Voldemort was up to something and that they needed to be extra careful. Whoever the spy was and what he was doing, no one knew exactly. Not even Moody, who had admitted that this spy was more cunning than he expected. He stated that, since they had lost so many Order-members already, the spy could very well have died during one of the attacks. Peter suggested it might have been Fabian and Gideon, which annoyed many Order members but mostly Frank and Mary. She sneered that it could also _very well be possible_ that Peter was the traitor with blood on his hands. Sirius knew she would have said a lot more if it weren't for Dumbledore who intervened, saying that pointing fingers at each other wouldn't get them any further.

Meanwhile, Sirius and Mary had finally found the courage to inform her family about the pregnancy. Jenna was thrilled, Mrs. Woods genuinely surprised and Mr. Woods… wasn't too happy at first. Mary's dad did not shout at Sirius or – as he had feared – kicked him out off the house, but he did deliver a huge sermon on the irresponsibility and consequences of their actions. Mrs. Woods tried to soothe her husband, but he went on and on about the fact that Mary was jeopordizing her future as a Healer. He finally calmed down when Mary intervened and told him the Head of Spell Damage at St.Mungo's had guaranteed her that she would still be welcome at the department when her maternity leave ended. Mr. Woods's face finally relaxed a little. When Mary had joined her mother to help preparing dinner, he patted Sirius on the shoulder and said: "Now you _have_ to stick around and marry her. Because if you don't, son, I'll break every bone in your body and rest assured I don't need a wand for that."

He was joking, but Sirius could detect a sense of seriousness in his remark. He quickly allayed Mr. Woods's mind by saying that he still had every intention of marrying his daughter. The evening turned out to be quite pleasant in the end when the five of them had dinner in the garden. Sirius enjoyed watching Mary as she was telling her parents about her work in St.Mungo's and Lily's pregnancy. Her hair was radiant, her blue eyes twinkled and she already had that special pregnancy glow: she looked absolutely amazing. Sirius realized that for the first time in weeks, he could finally relax. The Woods were only his in-laws and yet they always made him feel right at home. It reminded him of the Summer holidays he used to spend at James's parents.

The visit to Mary's parents (and the fact that they had accepted the pregnancy) provided Sirius with the energy to keep making long hours at the Ministry. It was the end of July, and Alice had just given birth to a lovely and healthy baby boy: Neville. This was wonderful news, but it also meant - with Frank gone to be with his wife and son and James taking care of a very pregnant Lily – that Sirius often had to work double shifts.

This was also the case on July 31th. It was still early in the morning: the sun had only just started to rise, colouring the sky bright red and orange. Sirius spent the entire night at the office, studying reports and maps as he, his supervisor Matthews and Mad-Eye Moody tried to track down people who had been acting suspicous during the last week.

Sirius yawned and stretched before rubbing his eyes. Moody, who was highlighting a name in a report with his wand, shot him a close look with his magical eye. "Tired, Black?"

Sirius shrugged. "Nothing a cup of coffee wouldn't fix, but I have been doing paper work since 8PM last night. So yeah, I'm pretty beat."

"Paper work is an important task of being an Auror, Sirius," Matthews observed sternly, his impressive catlike gaze boring into Sirius's eyes. "I know what they say at the Auror Program, but being a good Auror is not all about playing the hero."

"I know," Sirius said grudgingly while conjuring three mugs of coffee and a plate of biscuits. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it. To-," he glanced at the top bit of parchment on the pile in front of him, "determine if Egbert Forrester making three visits to Gringotts in one week is suspicious or not doesn't quite give me a thrill."

"You're wrong there, boy," Moody replied matter-of-factly. "If you look hard enough, you'll find the downright action you youngsters so desperately seek. How else do you think I have been able to catch so many Death Eaters? Or Zabini, who chased down half the Dark wizard population of Brazil? It's all in here," he said, briskly tapping his finger on the report.

His normal kept staring at Sirius while his magical eye had gone back to skimming the text. "Here, this one for example," he said and both his eyes looked down at the document. "Mr. and Mrs. Lestrange. They have been dealing with Borgin & Burkes. Or dealing… Borgin claims he has been extorted by them. Well, with Borgin you never know, that man is notorious for his ability to lie, but still… Someone should look into this."

Sirius tried to look merely interested, but his shocked look was probably giving him away. He knew he couldn't hide the fact that he was related to Bella and Rodolphus forever, but he hadn't expected that this inconvenient fact would be revealed this soon. And indeed, Matthews was frowning at him when he asked: "Do you know them?"

After a short moment of hesitation, Sirius nodded. "I really wish I didn't, but Bella - Mrs. Lestrange - is my cousin. I know her and her ways quite well, and I'm confident she's siding with the dark side."

"Do you have any proof of that?" Matthews asked, looking interested.

Sirius thought of the night Gideon and Fabian died, when Mary had been duelling that fierce Death Eater. How she got paralyzed by that spell, and how he had jumped between them to take on his cousin himself. He was absolutely sure the Death Eater had been Bella, but she had never pulled off her mask. So even though he knew it was her, he had no actual proof. He shook his head. "No," he said quietly after a pause. "Her mask didn't fall off her when I fought her, so technically, I have no proof. But I would recognize her sneering voice and duelling qualities anywhere."

"When did this fight take place?" Matthews inquired, reaching for his quill to write down the details.

"A long time ago," Sirius said after exchanging an uncomfortable look with Moody. Matthews wasn't supposed to find out anything about the Order missions, or that he, Moody, James, Frank and Alice were involved. "When I was still at Hogwarts."

"Hmmm," his menthor mumbled, looking dissapointed. "Sadly, that is of no longer of any use now."

Sirius was about to say it was only a matter of time before they would catch Bella on committing another crime, when a large owl flew into the office. It landed right in front of him and he quickly pulled the letter off and unfolded it.

"Say," Moody said and he shot the owl a closer look, "isn't that-"

"-James's owl, yes," he replied while his eyes were skimming the letter. It was by far the shortest note he had ever received from James, and yet, it was probably carrying the most important message so far. He could see that his friend had scribbled down the note in a real hurry, but Sirius was still able to decipher the handwriting:

_Padfoot,_

Lily in labour. We're heading to St.Mungo's right now.  
Could really use your support, because right now I feel  
like I'm losing my mind. Tell Matthews to shove his sodding  
reports in a place-that-must-not-be-named and get here  
as soon as you can. Please.

Prongs

Sirius reread the letter and couldn't help but giving a loud snort, which he hastily stifled in a cough when he noticed Matthews was watching him closely. James would be in a lot of trouble if their supervisor read that note. He quickly put it in his pocket as he stood up and said: "It's Lily Potter, James's wife. She's in labour right now and I'm the godfather, so I really should-"

"Go?" Matthews said, his bristly eyebrows raised. "Your shift doesn't end till noon. You're not going anywhere."

"But… But sir," Sirius stammered indignantly. "They're my best friends! I _have_ to go there or-"

He paused when he noticed both Matthews and Moody were grinning broadly. They were making fun of him. Sirius rolled his eyes. "Ha ha, very funny. Can I go now?"

"Certainly," Moody nodded. "We Aurors are not total insensitive jerks. Just remember that if an emergency will occur, I expect one of you guys to appear at the scene."

"Naturally," Sirius replied. And eh... thanks."

Sirius disapparated to St.Mungo's before one of them would change their mind. He arrived in the central hall and looked around, because he had no idea where to go. He looked at the welcome witch sitting behind a large desk at the reception area, but she didn't look that friendly. Thankfully, Sirius spotted Mary's colleague Ching-Lu crossing the hall while she was studying a patient's chart. He quietly approached her and softly tapped her on the shoulder. "Hello Ching-Lu."

She turned around and her eyes widened slightly. Sirius always had the distinct impression Ching-Lu liked him. It sure seemed like it, because her cheeks turned crimson when she stammered: "Sirius. Hi! You're eh… You're here for Mary's pregnant friend, I assume?"

Sirius nodded and – he couldn't help himself – used his signature smile which made Ching-Lu blush even more intently. "Would you mind showing me the way?"

"I eh… have a patient to go to right now, but the Obstetics department is on the third floor near the children's ward. That way," she said as she pointed to a stairway at the end of the hall.

"Thanks, you're a doll," he said and gave Ching-Lu a kiss on the cheek to thank her before hurrying over to the stairway, whistling and inwardly enjoying the fact he was still irresistible to practically every girl he would meet. Soon after he had entered the obstetics department, he spotted Frank, holding little Neville, and Alice – who was still on observation in the hospital -, Hagrid, who was talking to Peter, Remus and Brice, looking a little awkward as they were sitting next to each other and Mary (who was on duty) standing next the reception desk. She smiled when she saw him. "Hey."

Sirius walked over to give her a hug and a kiss. "Good morning," he whispered. "Have you seen them?"

"Only when James brought her in," Mary nodded. She smiled. "You should have seen him. His hair was standing out even more than usual. And Lily… She looked excited, determined and terrified at the same time."

"I bet she looked great."

"Oh yes, she did. Speaking of looks, you look exhausted."

Sirius leaned his head against Mary's forehead and closed his eyes. "Staring at dull reports all night would cure anyone with insomnia," he muttered darkly.

Mary kissed the tip of his nose. "I could get you something that will keep you awake all day."

"You mean like an espresso?"

She laughed. "I mean like a potion that is _ten_ times stronger than an espresso."

He smiled. "I'd really like that, but shouldn't you be working right now?"

"I _am_ working. Pierce was so generous to get me off Spell Damage and put me on this department for the day. I'm working at the children's department, which – if nothing disastrous happens - means I get to stay here."

"Sweet," Sirius smiled. "If you don't mind, I'd like to sit down and wait with the others."

"Sure. I'll just go and get you that potion."

He grinned. "I love you."

Mary rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I know."

She winked at him and walked out of the hallway. Sirius flopped down on the floor next to Brice, who was leaning back against the wall. "Hiya," she said cheerfully.

"Hi," he replied before shooting a look at Remus, who had sat down between Peter and Alice and was reading the Daily Prophet. "How're things in the war zone?"

Brice shrugged. "We haven't made up, if that's what you mean. But at least Remus is talking to me again. Although he still doesn't understand why I don't want to be the baby's godmother."

Sirius lifted an eyebrow. "Well, can you blame him? I still don't get it either."

"It's hard to explain, but I just don't think I would do a good job."

"Oh right, and I'm the perfect godfather?"

She frowned at him. "You're totally missing the point here, aren't you?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's not about you personally, it's about where you stand in life."

Sirius shot her a confused look. "Come again?"

Brice sighed, shot another look at Remus to check he wasn't overhearing their coversation and leaned in to whisper: "Frank and Alice, James and Lily, you and Mary, you guys are so much further than Remus and me."

He frowned. "And you think that's because Moony's issues of being a-"

"No!" she called while waving her hand dismissively. "It's not him, it's _me_. Look, you cannot imagine how thrilled I am for you guys and that you're going to raise a little Marauder family together. But… I'm 21. I still need to see the world, I _know_ that I don't want children for another ten years. I need my space, you know?"

"Being a godmother doesn't mean you're immediately responsible for the child, Brice."

She bit her lip. "That's what Remus said. But I know that I'm not able to be there for my child, a godchild, _any_ child. Like I said, it's hard to explain, but it's just a feeling I feel I shouldn't ignore. I mean, what should I have done, then? Become this baby's godmother against my will?"

Sirius shook his head. "No, of course not. I just hope you won't regret this decision later on."

She resolutely shook her head. "I'm positive I won't. Oh, this reminds me: I won't ready for godmothership in a few months either, so please don't ask me to become the godmother of your child. Turning down that offer once was bad enough."

Sirius laughed. "Got it." He looked up and saw that Mary was walking towards them. She was carrying a flask with a turquoise bubbling potion. "There you go," she said merrily as she flopped down next to him.

Sirius eyed the bright colored draft suspiciously. "Did you brew that?"

She narrowed her eyes slightly. "And what if I told you I did?"

"Then I wouldn't drink it," he said simply.

Brice laughed and Mary chuckled, shaking her head. "I cannot believe my own fiancé doesn't trust me to make him an Excieo Draft."

Sirius tapped his finger on the flask, making the potion inside hiss and bubble ominously. "It's not that I don't trust you. I'm just a little too familiar with your non-existing talent in potion-making."

She jokingly punched him on the arm. "I had Nate brew it for you."

"Who's that?" Brice asked, looking interested.

"Possibly the best potion-maker in Britain _and_ one of the nicest guys in St.Mungo's."

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "Nicest? Should I be worried?"

Mary laughed. "Just drink it up."

He shrugged and downed the potion. It tasted like a mixture of coffee beans, tonic and guarana: not the most delicious potion he had ever tasted, but the effects were unsurpassed. His eyes shot open and a sudden rush of energy flowed through this vains. "You know," he admitted. "It tastes like crap, but it does work miracles. I feel like I could run a marathon. Or even two."

"Easy there boy," Brice laughed and she patted his shoulder. "Who knows how much longer the delivery is going to take. Waiting takes time, and energy."

Sirius nodded and leaned his head back against the wall. They sat there in silence, simply listening to the sounds around them. He had closed his eyes and could hear Alice singing softly to a sleeping Neville and he could vaguely overhear Remus and Peter who were talking about Crouch's new action plan to stop Voldemort's rise of power. After another while, he opened his eyes and looked at Mary, who was suddenly sitting up straight. The normally white-colored wrist band she (and every other Healer on duty in St.Mungo's) was wearing had turned bright blue. Sirius sat up as well and put a hand on the small of her back. "Is everything okay?"

"Code blue…" she whispered. "Code blue."

Sirius frowned. "What does that mean?"

Mary shot him an anxious look and crawled back up. "Attack, attempted murder, accident… In short: disaster," she whispered urgently. "I have to go. Edgar should be down there too."

She was already stalking off when Sirius ran after her and held her back. "Wait, is there anything we can do? I mean, the Order?" he finished in a more urgent but softer tone.

"Just wait here. I'll come back with information as soon as I can."

She turned around and hurried through the swing doors and down the stairs. Sirius walked back to the others, who were all looking concerned. "What is going on?" Peter asked.

"Shouldn' we be warnin' Dumbledore?" Hagrid suggested.

Sirius put his hands in his pockets. "He probably already knows a lot more than we do. I suggest we wait until Mary or Edgar gets back here."

Hagrid nodded and no one else objected. They all remained silent, feeling the tension rise while they were waiting. Not only because Lily was still in labour, but also because none of them knew exactly what was going on downstairs. All the other visitors were able to tell them was that there had been an attack in Diagon Alley and that there were casualties, but that the Ministry was trying to keep things quiet.

Finally, after another whole hour of waiting, Mary returned to the Obstetics department. Her limegreen robes were covered in blood stains, as was her face. She looked shocked, but – oddly enough – calm and in control, making Sirius admire her strength and courage even more.

"Merlin's Beard Mary, what happened!?" Remus called when she had reached the group.

"It's a complete mess down there," she sighed while pulling off her bloody gloves. "The Death Eaters attacked Gringotts again. And this time, they did succeed in stealing something. The Ministry claims they don't know what the object is, but Edgar believes that is a load of rubbish. Anyway, the Death Eaters used a lot of violence. At least fifteen people and eight goblins got killed in the attack, and the number of injuries is even higher."

"Anyone we know?" Hagrid asked urgently.

"Not yet, Hagrid," Mary replied. She shot a look at a pale-looking Brice, who was pointing her wand straight at her. "Brice, what are you doing?"

"_Scourgify_," Brice muttered as a reply and the blood on Mary's face and robes disappeared. "Sorry," she said. "I just can't stand the sight of blood. I was about to faint."

"Oh," Mary said. "And… You're okay now?"

"Yeah," Brice smiled bravely. "Couldn't be better. But eh… What now?"

"I should head back to the Auror office at once," Sirius said. "Matthews and Moony will need me there."

"You can't go, Sirius," Mary said dismissively. "You're the baby's godfather."

"But Matthews ordered me to come back if something happened and-"

"I'll go," Frank intervened.

"Frank!" Alice called indignantly.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," he said as he kissed Alice and Neville goodbye. "But I'm the least close friend to James and Lily and I'm a fully trained Auror. I can do more than Sirius at this point."

Sirius couldn't express how much he was appreciating Franks gesture. For a young father to leave his wife and newborn child behind to investigate a dangerous crime scene: he wasn't sure he could have done the same if he were in that position. He put his hand on Franks shoulder. "Thanks a lot, mate."

Frank smiled. "I'll make sure to contact Albus and Zabini as well before I return. Give my best to Lily and James, okay?"

"Will do," Sirius nodded and as he watched Frank walking away, he realized this guy had become very dear to him. He sniggered when he imagined Frank as a fellow Marauder. It's a shame he had been a few years above them, because he would have made a pretty darn good one. Sirius turned around as he thought about what kind of Animagus Frank could have been – for some reason, he pictured him as a powerful puma – when he noticed that Alice was crying. Mary and Brice were trying to comfort her. For a moment, Sirius wanted to walk up to Alice to reassure her that everything would be alright, but then he realized that there was no way of guaranteeing that Frank would return safely. In this crazy time they were living in, you could never tell what would happen next.

Right when Sirius was walking over to Remus and Peter and sat down, the entrance door to the delivery-rooms opened. James walked out and he looked simply ecstatic, a complete contrast to the people who were aware of what happened in Diagon Alley.

Sirius got back up quickly and hurried over to James. His friend was grinning foolishly, like his mind was in a complete other dimension, far away from the obstetics department in St. Mungo's. Sirius placed both his hands on James's shoulder. "Prongs?"

His friends grin became even bigger. "I've become a dad."

"Yes, we know that," Peter replied impatiently. He and the others had also gathered around James.

"Of what?" Remus asked, sounding just as curious.

"I," James stated solemnly, "am the proud father of the most beautiful boy in the world."

End of Update

**A/N Was the end of this chapter a cliffie or not? I'm not sure myself. Anyway, I hope you all liked it, you will actually meet Harry in the next update. Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by, and… Oh, here's a teaser of what's coming next:**

_Vernon, who – according to Mary – looked just like a walrus with a giant moustache, was carrying an explicit large bundle in a soft yellow blanket._

Mary frowned and tried to figure out what it could be. From up here, it looked just a large bag of apples. Even Sirius seemed to be confused, because his gaze was fixed on the bundle when he quietly asked: "Why is that man next to Petunia carrying a sack of potatoes?"

Mary thought it was hilarious that he was thinking the same thing and snorted. "I don't know."

"No seriously," Sirius replied, looking deadpan. "Is that common in the Muggle world, to provide a newborn child with enough potatoes to survive its first Winter?"


	63. Harry's Arrival

Next update on Everlasting

Next update on Everlasting! You guys better enjoy the lightness of this chapter, because the next updates will be dark, action-packed and full of drama, I'm afraid -consults death list in story outline- Yup, more people are going to bite the dust...

Enjoy and R&R, please! –Mara.

**Chapter Sixty-Three:**

James's statement got followed by a short but staggering silence in which they were all eagerly awaiting what else their friend had to say. However, when James continued to grin like a fool in love and didn't say anything else, everyone started to bombard him with questions.

"How did it go?"  
"Were there any complications?"  
"How is Lily feeling?"  
"Does the baby look anything like you?"

"Guys, guys!" James called laughing while holding up his hands. "Keep your robes on and relax. Our son, Harry, is perfectly healthy, Lily is feeling great and looking stunningly beautiful, as usual. Now, I came here to-"

"-Can we go and see them now?" Peter asked with an excited look on his face.

Sirius rolled his eyes and elbowed him. "Shut up Wormtail, and let Prongs talk for a second."

James laughed. "Thanks Padfoot," he said with twinkling eyes. "And Pete, I need you to be a little more patient, because at first only the closest family is allowed to visit. And since Lily's parents and Petunia aren't here yet…"

He gave Sirius a pat on the shoulder, who looked stunned. "Who, me?"

James arched his eyebrows. "You're the godfather."

"Oh, right," he replied. "Okay, shall we go then?"

"Yeah, hang on," James said as he pulled Mary – who was standing behind Hagrid - towards him. "Lily specifically asked me to get you as well. Besides, you'll be marrying Sirius one day, so that basically makes you Harry's unofficial godmother anyway."

Mary beamed, feeling delighted and honored that she and Sirius got to see Harry first, but she was feeling a bit guilty towards the others. She shot an uncomfortable look at Brice, who smiled back and said: "He's right, you know. Go on, don't make Lily wait too long. You know she hates that."

Mary nodded, turned around and walked over to James and Sirius, who were waiting for her a little ahead. "Okay," she said. "Let's go."

James winked at her and walked through the doors. Mary and Sirius followed him. He reached for her hand on the way. Mary noticed his grip wasn't feeling that reassuring as usual, but tense and even shaking a little; she realized he must be just as excited as she was. When they were walking on the "Demeter Spiro Ward" towards a room at the end of the long hallway, James suddenly asked: "Where is Frank?"

"What do you mean?" Mary asked nervously while exchanging a worried glance with Sirius. James and Lily probably didn't know anything about the Gringotts attack, and she didn't think it was a good idea to worry them with anything that wasn't related to their son. Not on this day.

"Frank," James repeated as he gave a nod to a Healer they were passing. "I saw that everyone we invited was there. Everyone, even Alice and Neville, except him."

Sirius seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Mary when he replied, but – as usual – it didn't seem to take him any trouble to respond in a composed manner. "Frank had to go and pick up Neville's grandmother from King's Cross. He promised to get back here as soon as possible, though."

Mary shot an admiring look at her boyfriend. She sometimes forgot how calm and confident he reacted in situations like these. And the beauty of it all was that Sirius wasn't even really lying: Frank _was_ supposed to pick up Mrs. Longbottom from the station later that night. And James was totally buying the excuse. "That's quite alright," he smiled before pausing in front of a door. "You guys ready?"

This turned out to be a rhetorical question, because James didn't wait for their response and quickly knocked before opening the door. The three of them walked into a white room with several paintings of smiling, yawning and waving babies on the walsl. Lily was lying in a large bed in the middle of the room. She was cuddling a tiny baby wrapped in a little blanket and smiled when she spotted them. "Come in," she beamed.

"Congratulations Lil," Sirius said as he walked over to Lily to give her a kiss.

"Thank you," she smiled. "Meet Harry James Potter."

Mary and James, who were standing at the other side of the bed, smiled when they were watching how Sirius tried to say hello to his godchild. The baby's reflexes turned out to be excellent, because as soon as Sirius bent over to kiss his little forehead, Harry reached out to touch his nose. Sirius looked stunned, which made James and Mary laugh aloud. Lily grinned and said: "He did the same thing to James. I think it's his way of saying hello."

"Perhaps he thinks noses are comparable to a snitch?" Mary suggested.

"Could be," James sniggered. "It's basically a given that my son will be a Quidditch star one day, just like his old man."

Sirius snorted. "You're thirty-four when Harry gets to try out for one of the Hogwarts Quidditch teams for the first time. You'll be anything _but_ old by then."

His friend shrugged and looked at Mary, who had just walked over to Lily to hug her as well. "Congrats, _mum_. I don't know how you feel, but you look fantastic."

"Yeah, I dare to bet that you're the hottest mum in all of London right now," Sirius added cheekily.

"Will you stop flirting with my wife!" James said while jokingly hitting Sirius around the head, but Lily laughed and said: "You say that now, Sirius, but just wait until it's Mary's turn. Would you like to hold Harry?"

Sirius hesitated. "Eh, I don't know, Lily. I might drop him."

"I'm sure you'll do fine, but if you're sure… How about you, Mare?"

"Oooh, I'd love that!" Mary grinned, carefully taking Harry from Lily and placing him on her arm, making sure she was supporting his head with her other hand. She gently kissed him on his head – unlike the guys - Harry did not try to attack her nose - before she slowly walked over to Sirius and said: "Look at him, he's so cute."

And he really was. Harry was a perfect mix of James and Lily, although at first sight, he seemed to have inherited more of his dad's features. He looked utterly peaceful - snoozing even - when he was being held by Mary. His eyes were closed and his little fists lay on his chest. That first time Mary was holding Harry felt surreal. Of course she had enjoyed admiring Neville, but she was totally enchanted by Harry. From his mouth to the little tuft of black hair – which, miraculously, was already fighting gravity – sticking out from under his blue hat, she loved everything about him. Mary completely agreed with James: Harry really was the most beautiful baby in the world. Or well, at least until she had given birth to her own baby.

When Mary looked at Sirius, she could see he was very taken with his godson as well, although he seemed more surprised about her experience with taking care of babies. "Where did you learn all this?" he asked quietly while gently stroking Harry's head.

Mary smiled. "Every Healer is supposed to know how to hold a child or baby. And besides, I have a little sister I used to watch over when my parents were not around, remember?"

He nodded, but his eyes shot back down at Harry when the baby unexpectedly stretched and yawned. Mary also looked down and smiled. "Alright, there is no sense in putting it off any longer. Here, you take him."

Sirius looked up. "Are you sure? But I don't know-"

"It's very easy: just take him from me and make sure you support his head."

Mary had already handed Harry over to Sirius and was now slowly pulling her arms away. "There you go."

"He's so tiny," he whispered tenderly. He was positively beaming when Harry's little fingers grabbed part of his shirt. Sirius slowly carried the baby over to James, who had just conjured a bunch of balloons out of nowhere and was now trying to glue them to the ceiling.

Mary turned back to Lily and sat down on one side of the bed. She and her friend stared at each other for a moment without feeling the urge to say anything at all. They already knew what they would have said anyway. It was only when Mary heard Sirius quietly explaining what was happening at Gringotts to James – whose brow was furrowing more by the minute – and noticed that Lily was shooting a curious look at them, that she felt the need to step in. She softly stroke Lily's hair for a moment and asked: "So… How are you _really_ feeling?"

She sighed. "Exhausted, but blissfully happy. I can't remember ever having felt like this before in my life."

"Hu-hum," Mary nodded. "Now you know what I'm going to ask you next, don't you?"

They had been discussing the matter of childbirth earlier that month and Mary had made Lily swear to tell her the truth about the – undoubtedly painful – experience.

Lily laughed. "I have a hunch, yes. You want to know everything about the delivery, I presume?"

"Precisely. How bad did it get?"

Lily shot her a doubtful look. "Do you want me to lie or to tell you the truth?"

"The truth, of course."

"Well," she said confidentially as she leaned in a little closer. "You know what they always say about childbirths? That it's extremely painful but that you completely forget the pain when you see your baby for the first time?"

"Yes…?" Mary replied wearily, not sure if she would like what Lily was going to say next.

"Let me tell you," she continued calmly, "I haven't forgotten _any_ of that pain. And I doubt I ever will."

Mary rubbed her nose, suddenly feeling quite disheartened. "That bad, huh?"

She nodded gravely. "It's hell. I wish I could tell you otherwise, but you asked for the truth. And it hurts, really bad. Aww Mare," she added soothingly when she noticed the shocked look on her friends face. "The pain is definitely worth it. I mean, just look at Harry!"

Mary grimaced. "Yeah, I know… I'm just not that keen on suffering too much before getting to the cuddly baby-moment."

"Tut-tut," a disapproving voice suddenly sounded behind them. Mary and Lily looked up: Healer Sauvage - a short and plump middle-aged witch with long curly blonde hair - was standing right behind them. She shook her head and said in her unambiguous French accent: "Lily, Lily… Whenever a pregnant friend asks you about the birth, you lie. Didn't your mother ever tell you that?"

Lily flushed, but Mary said quickly: "It's my fault. I asked – no, begged is a better word – her to tell me the truth."

Sauvage smiled. "Right. Now that you're aware of that horrible truth, do you feel any better?"

Mary smiled back weakly. "Not particularly, no."

"I tried to emphasise that the pain is worth it," Lily said. "And that it wasn't all that bad."

"No you didn't!" Mary said indignantly. "You said - and I quote - it was a living hell."

Lily shrugged, but Sauvage placed her hands on her and Mary's shoulder. "Listen my dears," she said kindly. "Think about it: if giving birth really is painful as "hell"' or whatever you girls call it, then why would so many women decide on having another baby after their firstborn?"

"Because it's worth the trouble," Lily replied cheerfully while shooting a longing look at Harry, who was now being cuddled by James.

"Exactly, and because it's the most exillerating experience a woman will ever have," the Healer smiled. Now, I need to take another look at Lily, so…"

"We'll go right now," Mary nodded and she jumped off the bed.

After Sauvage had shot a look at Mary's not yet existing bump, she said: "I just told Sirius that I would like to to see you both next week. Contact my secretary and make an appointment, alright?"

"Sure," Mary replied and she looked at Lily. "Can we send in the others after your check-up is done?"

"Yeah, I guess so. Unless… My parents and 'Tunia, Vernon and their baby, aren't they here yet?"

"They might be. I'll find out, don't worry."

Mary wasn't sure if Lily was hearing anything she just said, because James had just handed back Harry and she seemed to be in a completely different universe, where only she and her baby existed. Which Mary totally understood. She remained standing there for another moment until James caught her by the arm and led her out of the room while whispering: "Time to go now."

When they got back to the hallway, Mary turned around to give him the closest hug she could muster. "Wow," James laughed when she finally let him go. "What did I do to deserve that?"

Even Sirius, who was leaning back against the wall, lifted an eyebrow and looked amused. Mary grinned. "I hadn't properly congratulated you yet. So there, congrats on becoming a dad."

"Cheers," James grinned before his eyes fell on a peculiar group of people approaching them. "Oh crap!" he said. "That's Lily family. I better go and meet them."

James hurried off to welcome his wife's relatives, leaving Sirius and Mary behind in the hallway. He put his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Should we go back to the others?"

"Yeah, that's probably for the best. Did you tell James about Diagon Alley?"

He nodded. "He believes the attack had something to do with that Cup of Assiduity which Voldemort moved that night Fabian and Gideon died, but I'm not sure I agree. It could very well be something else. We need to get the Order together as soon as possible, although James made me swear I would not say anything to Lily. He doesn't want her to get upset. Did she hear anything about what we were discussing?"

Mary shook her head. "I don't think so. I could distract her with a cross-examination about the birth."

"And?"

"Apparently the pain is almost untenable."

Sirius laughed. "Come on love, it cannot be _that_ bad."

Mary shot him an incredulous look over her shoulder. "Really? Can you imagine how it must feel to push something that big out of-"

"-Shhh," he interrupted her. "Look, it's Lily's family."

Mary looked up and saw that James was guiding Lily's parents, Petunia – looking rigid as ever -, and an enormous man with a big moustache – the infamous Vernon, Petunia's husband – through the hallway. Lily's mother was supporting an incurably ill Mr. Evans. They both looked tired, but also proud, excited and alight with happiness. Vernon, who – according to Mary – looked just like a giant walrus, was carrying an explicit large bundle in a soft yellow blanket.

Mary frowned and tried to figure out what it could be. From up here, it looked just a large bag of apples. Even Sirius seemed to be confused, because his gaze was still fixed on the bundle when he quietly asked: "Why is that man next to Petunia carrying a sack of potatoes?"

Mary thought it was hilarious that Sirius was thinking the same thing and snorted. "I don't know."

"No seriously," Sirius replied, looking deadpan. "Is that common in the Muggle world, to provide a newborn child with enough potatoes to survive its first Winter?"

James and Lily's family were now passing them and she smiled politiely, trying very hard to hold back her laughter. However, her smile faded off her face rather quickly when she saw that the heavy bundle in Vernon's arms was in fact a child. Mary did not dare to speak or laugh until they had passed them and neither did Sirius. But as soon as they were out of earshot, he stammered: "Eh... What exactly was that?"

Mary frowned. "I'm not sure, unless… Merlin, of course!" she suddenly called while hitting herself on the forehead. "That's Dudley, Lily's cousin."

Sirius stared at her, looking horrifed. "Are you saying that _thing_ is a child?"

"Sirius!"

"Oh, now don't tell me you weren't appalled by seeing how bulky that kid was. I wonder what they have been feeding it, whipped cream instead of milk?"

"He could be just obese, or perhaps he inherited his father's posture?"

He pulled a face. "Merlin, I hope not. Unless his parents are trying set the record on how to make a baby gain fifty pounds in little over a month."

She hit him on the arm. "That is _not_ funny."

"I'm not joking," he replied darkly. "If that kid weighs this much after only a month, imagine what he will look like in a few years."

Mary bit her lip. "I see your point. On the other hand, it's none of our business. If they want to fatten up Dudley, that's their responsibility."

Sirius shrugged and reached for her hand as he started to walk to the main waiting room. As soon as they walked through the doors, the others got up and gathered around Sirius and Mary to overload them with their questions.

"Finally!"  
"What took you guys so long?"  
"How was it?"  
"How big is Harry?"

Sirius held up his hands to quiet them, exactly like James had done only an hour ago, which made them all laugh. "Easy now," he chuckled when they had calmed down. "One question at a time, please."

"Is it true tha' Harry has Lily's eyes?" Hagrid asked.

"Well," Sirius replied thoughtfully. "He was asleep so his eyes were closed, but James said he does, yes. How did you know that?"

"I heard two Healers who were present at the birth talkin' about a baby with striking green eyes, jus' like his mum. I figured they must have be'n talkin' about Lily."

Sirius laughed. "You thought right, Hagrid."

"So what's he like?" Brice wanted to know.

Mary smiled. "I'd love to say that James was overreacting, but Harry is the most adorable baby I've ever seen. No offense, Alice," she added apologetically.

Alice wasn't offended. "Non taken Mary, since this is the child of your best friends."

"When are we allowed to visit them?" Remus asked.

"Once Lily's family has left, I suppose. Did you see them coming in?"

Remus nodded and Peter sniggered. "You couldn't miss them if you tried, now could you? I mean, did you see that kid? What a total fatty!"

"Peter…" Remus said admonishingly.

He shrugged. "Whatever, I can't wait to see Harry. How much longer do we have to wait?"

"I don't know," Mary replied. "But being a little more patient won't hurt you. Did you guys hear anything new about Gringotts?"

Brice shook her head. "Not much. Edgar said that two more people died in the attack and that the Ministry hasn't caught any of the perpetrators yet. Oh, and Albus dropped by – very shortly, although he really wished he could have stayed to congratulate James and Lily - to announce an emergency Order-meeting is scheduled for tomorrow night."

"And did Pierce come back to say he still needs me on the ER?"

"No," Alice replied. "We haven't seen him."

"Hmm…" Mary wondered if she was supposed to go back to take care of the victims. She was on duty after all. "I think I'll go back to see if I can help out."

She was about to head for the stairs when Sirius held her back. "Hey, if they really needed you, they would have summoned you with that wrist band of yours, right?"

Mary shot him an indecisive look. "Yeah, so?"

"So… Theoretically speaking, it would be okay to stay here with the rest of us and wait?"

"Yes, theoretically I could do that."

Sirius cocked his head to the side, adapting that pleading puppy look Mary was never able to resist. "I really would like you to stay…"

Mary laughed, rolling her yes, and said: "Fine, a little more waiting wouldn't hurt, I suppose," before flopping down on one of the chairs. After Sirius had sat down as well, he put his arm around her and whispered into her hair: "I still cannot believe James and Lily have a son..."

She put her head on his shoulder and sighed happily. "I know, Harry really is the cutest thing."

"That is until _our_ child is born."

"You don't know that. Some babies turn out rather ugly."

"With us as its parents? Impossible!" Sirius said contemptuously.

Mary looked up to shoot him an amused look. "Once again your arrogance is shameless."

Sirius winked at her. "Confidence, love, not arrogance."

Mary laughed, greached up to give him a kiss and put her head back on his shoulder. Her eyes fell on Remus, who was sitting at the other side of the room. He had put his arms around Brice and they were talking quietly; their heads close together. Mary grinned. That didn't look bad at all. Sirius was softly carressing her hair and Mary closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying his touch. She tried to analyse the last two eventful days.

On one hand, there had been the birth of Neville and Harry: a blissfull event that brought all of them closer together. On the other, there was the attack in Diagon Alley that killed seventeen people and eight Goblins. It once again made Mary realize how thin and frail the line between life and death actually was. She and her friends were celebrating two new lives, whereas many others were mourning over their loved ones. Mary knew that it was absolutely horrible what happened to those people today, but she couldn't help herself. She was still smiling: happy and deeply relieved for the fact that for once, she and _her_ loved ones had been spared.

End of Update

A tiny teaser of what is coming next:

"_Shall we go home as well?" Mary asked__, looking back at Sirius. She arched an eyebrow when she noticed he was watching her closely. "What?"_

He smiled. "I just remembered that's one of the first things about you I fell in love with. You look so incredibly cute when you're blushing, did you know that?"

"I hate that I go red so easily," she muttered, trying to fight that familiar tingling feeling which meant her cheeks were reddening yet again, but it was no good.

When Sirius noticed, he burst out laughing again before pulling her towards him to softly kiss her glowing cheeks. "So cute…" he whispered softly. "Are you doing that especially for me?"


	64. An Old Friends Betrayal

Chapter Sixty-Four:

**Chapter Sixty-Four:**

It did not take long before Dumbledore summoned everyone for an Order meeting to discuss what happened at Gringotts. Sirius and Mary received his invitation by owl on the morning after Harry's birth. Sirius quickly scribbled down a reply and sent the note back to Dumbledore. He told Mary that a lot of members would probably attend this assembly.

Sirius was right. When the two of them arrived at The Dove the following night, they noticed that all the other Order-members were already there. All of them, with the exception of Lily and Alice, who were at home to take care of their babies. James, who sat down next to Remus and Mary, said Lily had only agreed to stay with Harry if James would tell her everything about the meeting later that night. "She also seems to be fearing that the euphoria of becoming a dad has affected my memory, so she gave me this."

He held up a tiny glass ball which contained white smoke and rolled his eyes. Remus snorted. "A Remembrall? I always thought these things are completely useless."

"Tell me about it," James replied darkly. "What's the point of an object that reminds you of something you've forgotten when it can't even tell you what exactly you can't remember."

Mary conjured a piece of parchment and a quill and lowered them on the table, right in front of James. "How about simply taking some notes?" she suggested.

James looked annoyed. "How about just using my head and remember what has been said?" he echoed.

Mary frowned. "Geez James, don't bite my head off. It was only a suggestion. And Dumbledore is always taking notes, so I thought…"

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "It's just that my memory has never failed me before and I don't think fatherhood is going to change that."

His gaze shifted to Dumbledore who was getting up from his seat to start the meeting. "Welcome everyone. I think it is superfluous to outline the goals of this meeting but first, I'd like to take this opportunity to officially congratulate Frank and Alice and James and Lily with the arrival of their sons, Neville and Harry. May their lives be both long and prosperous. Cheers."

"Cheers!" everyone boomed as they raised their goblets to the young dads.

"Now on to more serious matters," Dumbledore said. I want to analyze our findings on the Gringotts attack step by step. Moody, let's start with you."

"When Zabini and I arrived at Diagon Alley, we couldn't immediately start investigating the bank," Moody said. "We were too busy calming people down. It was a complete and utter chaos, you see."

"But of course you found out more about the purpose of the attack eventually," Elphias stated matter-of-factly, twirling his odd-looking hat around in his hands.

Moody frowned. "After a while I maneged to persuade the present president of Gringotts, Holrok Gringott, to let Zabini and Longbottom investigate the crime scene, yes. But Gringott refused to tell me anything about the attack, or why the Death Eaters broke into Gringotts. However, I take it that he was more garrulous when you talked to him, Albus?"

Dumbledore nodded. "Not in so many words. He said extactly the same as Crouch had done minutes before, but unlike him, Holrok was unable to fully close his mind. And I am skilled enough in Legillimency to learn that the Death Eaters succeeded in getting whatever it was they came for. I also picked up something else… something about a vault."

"Vault 701?" Frank asked, looking interested.

Dumbledore shot him a long look and nodded slowly. "Indeed. For some reason, that number rings a bell, but I can't quite place it." He wrote the number down on some parchment and circled it with his quill. "What else did you find out?"

Zabini cleared his throat. "The Death Eaters were only interested in robbing 701. They didn't even touch the surrounding vaults, but whatever was kept in that safe has now vanished without a trace. There was nothing else we could find in there, except-"

"Except this," Frank interrupted while pulling a fragile-looking piece of parchment out of his pocket and placing it on the table. "We found this document on the ground next to the door as if it had fallen out of someone's pocket. It looks like some ancient code, but we're not entirely sure. Brice, could you take a look?"

"Sure," she replied eagerly and Frank handed her the parchment. It seemed to be printed with some mysterious-looking symbols.

When Brice, who wasn't sitting that far away from Mary, was leaning in to study the note, Mary realized that the paper wasn't made of parchment after all, but papyrus. Mary immediately connected the papyrus to Egypt and apparently, so did Brice. "It looks like it's written in an old language," she said. "Coptic Egyptian, if I'm not mistaken..."

"Do you think you can decipher what it says?" Sirius asked.

Brice nodded. "It might take me a few weeks, but I'm sure I can crack it eventually, yes."

"What does a note in some kind of ancient Egyptian code has to do with whatever the Death Eaters stole from Gringotts?" Mary wondered aloud.

"Perhaps Voldemort plans to extend his influence in Egypt," Marlene suggested after she had magically refilled her goblet. "It is no secret that he has many followers among Egyptians."

Remus frowned. "But that wouldn't explain why they communicate in ancient Egyptian. I mean, it's unlikely that many Egyptians are still able to speak or write in a language that no longer exists."

Mary agreed with Remus and she wasn't the only one, because his remark got followed by a long silence in which they all thought about Voldemort and why his Death Eaters were carrying letters written in some ancient Egyptian dialect. At last it was James who, without quite meaning to, broke the silence by suddenly mumbling: "That Cup…"

"I'm sorry James, what?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"The Cup of Assiduity," he repeated.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Oh great, not _that_ story again."

"That's the Cup Lily and I saw on our honeymoon in Egypt," James continued undisturbed, ignoring Sirius's sneer. "Voldemort himself was in that cave and soon after leaving that area, we heard that the Ministry – the British one – ordered to remove the Cup from the tomb."

Moody shot him a consenting look and Dumbledore placed his fingertips against each other before tipping the index fingers against his nose, which meant he was in deep thought. "Hmmm," he nodded at last. "You might be onto something here, James."

James shot a triumphant look at Sirius, who scowled and downed his goblet of wine as a response. "You think so?" James asked.

Dumbledore nodded again while scribbling down something else on the piece of parchment. "Yes, that would explain why Voldemort is so anxious to get his hands on that Cup. Although I have to admit that I was mostly wondering what his plans are now he has confiscated such a valuable object."

"Maybe he wants to create another… eh Hozzux?" Peter suggested.

Dumbledore shot him a thoughtful look. "A Horcrux?"

"Not bad, Pettigrew," Zabini observed. "That would make sense, Albus. A Cup with such a rich history…"

"I don't know, Sean," the Headmaster said slowly. "Voldemort already has a Horcrux, and that is _if_ he made one, which I still sincerely doubt."

"Regulus destroyed Voldemort's object before he got killed," Sirius noted.

"I'm aware of that, Sirius," Dumbledore replied patiently. "But I'm fairly confident that the owner of a Horcrux doesn't sense it when the object is destroyed." He sighed. "I'm afraid there isn't much we can do as long as we don't know exactly what this letter is about. I hope that thought doesn't pressure you too much, Brice."

She laughed. "Not at all, Albus. I'll get started on it right away."

Dumbledore smiled. "Very well, then I suggest suspending this meeting until further notice. Unless anyone else has more news?"

When none of them raised their hand, Dumbledore wished them all a good night before excusing himself, because he had to attend another meeting at midnight (with the Hogwarts ghosts) and disapparating with a soft pop. Some of the others remained behind to have a drink, but James and Frank immediately went to their wives and babies and Mary and Sirius decided to go home early as well.

When the four of them had left the Dove and were walking to a safe spot in an alley to disapparate, James suddenly nudged Mary. "Before I forget, Lily asked if you could give her the recepy of that Excieo Draft. She reckons we'll be needing a good energy drink when Harry keeps us up all night."

Mary frowned. "That's a complex draft. It's not that I don't trust Lily to brew it, but… Mind you, it's not even legal in Britain."

Sirius, who was holding her hand, stopped walking. When Mary looked back, he was shooting her an incredulous look. "I cannot believe you gave me an illegal potion!"

She laughed. "Oh, don't look at me like that! Please remind me, when was the last time you objected to doing or drinking something illegal?"

He chuckled. "Fair enough."

"Besides, they've been producing the Excieo Draft for years in South America. Plus, Nate made it," Mary told him dismissively before turning back to James. "Anyway, that potion contains several herbs you won't find in the local stores at Diagon Alley."

"What kind of herbs?"

"Well, you probably already know it's not that hard to get ginseng, but you also need gotu kola, rhodiola and bacopa. Herbs only St. Mungo's has in stock."

"And…" James said teasingly after he had jokingly pushed Sirius away from her side and slid his arms around her waist. "Do you think there would be a way of… obtaining these ingredients? For Lily, I mean?"

"And Alice and me… Please, we are soooo tired," Frank added while also putting his arms around Mary, so that she was now being closely hugged by two men.

Mary couldn't help herself and blushed fiercely which made the three guys burst out laughing. After she had released herself from their grip and regained her composure a little bit, she said: "I'll see what I can do, alright?"

"Thanks Mary, you're a doll," James said and he kissed her on the cheek. "Now if you'll excuse me, I want to go home right now and give my adorable son a goodnight kiss." He disapparated without another word.

"Same here," Frank grinned and he also disapparated, leaving Sirius and Mary behind in the deserted alley.

"Shall we go home as well?" Mary asked, looking back at Sirius. She lifted an eyebrow when she noticed he was watching her. "What?"

Sirius smiled. "I just remembered that's one of the first things I fell in love with. You look so incredibly cute when you're blushing, did you know that?"

"I hate that I go red so easily," she muttered, trying to fight the familiar tingling feeling which meant her cheeks were reddening yet again, but it was no good.

When Sirius noticed, he burst out laughing again before pulling her towards him to softly kiss her glowing cheeks. "So cute…" he whispered softly. "Are you doing that especially for me?"

Mary forced herself to ignore her blushing and looked him straight in the eyes. "No," she said shortly. "Now can we go?"

For a moment it seemed like he wasn't going to finish teasing her anytime soon, but then he reconsidered and let go so they could separately apparate to their house. "After you, my lady."

Collecting the Excieo Draft-ingredients for Lily and Alice turned out to be more complicated than Mary thought. The security charms on the herbs larder in the St. Mungo's cellar were a lot more complex than before and since she didn't work in that department, there was no way she could break those charms. Her only chance was to consult Nate, so eventually she decided to tell him the truth. She knew there was a chance he would get angry with her for trying to break into the larder, but reasoned informing him would be the only way.

Thankfully, Nate didn't mind providing the herbs at all: he even refused to let Lily and Alice pay for the ingredients. He was actually pleased to learn that more people were that laudatory about the Excieo Draft, although he strongly advised to not drink the potion more often than three times a week.

And so, every Friday night before she was going home, Mary sneaked into the larder to collect the herbs and sent them over to Lily and Alice. After another exhausting forty-hour shift on a sweltering day at the end of August, Mary was walking towards the larder. After hiding behind a rack of bandages from Winchelsey who was crossing the corridor and whistled as he passed her, she checked if no one else was around before lifting the safety charm on the entrance door.

After she had walked through the door, she turned to close it behind her. For a moment Mary found herself standing in utter darkness, until she used her wand to lit the candles on the walls. Mary made her way through the elongated and now candlelit room until she found the stands she was looking for. She quickly filled her bag with small bundles of rhodiola, gotu kola and bacopa and was about to head back when she spotted someone else standing on a ladder in the next passage.

Mary froze. She would be in some serious trouble if someone would catch her in here. She considered sneaking off silently, but then she realized that this person had probably already noticed someone had turned the lights on. Mary frowned. What kind of Healer would prefer collecting his herbs in complete darkness? She shrugged. She just had to make up a story instead. Mary tiptoed towards the other passage and peeked around the corner. And then her mouth dropped. "Alison?"

The woman on the ladder swirled around and Mary noticed it was indeed Alison Zabini, the Slyterin girl she, Lily and Brice used to hang out with at Hogwarts. She had changed a lot over the years. Her wild Afro-hairdo was gone and had been replaced with long and tight braids. Her face had become more lined; she looked older than Mary remembered. And less friendlier, as it turned out. "Hello Mary," Alison said coolly.

Mary's immediate thought was to ask her how she was, but then she remembered she had just caught her in the St. Mungo's larder. "What are you doing here?" she inquired.

Alison's eyes momentarily shifted to the entrance door before saying: "I cannot tell you that, sorry."

Mary narrowed her eyes. "Who let you in?"

"Can't say."

Mary started to get annoyed. "Alison, _you_ have broken into this larder and I, as a Healer, have permission to stun you. Now, I don't want to do that, so you better start explaining what you're doing here before I'm going to change my mind."

Alison licked her lips while considering this threat. At last, she sighed and said: "One of your colleagues let me in here. I cannot tell you his name, I promised I wouldn't… But it's for my son, Blaise. He is ill."

Mary frowned. "You have a son?"

She smiled. "Yeah, he's only four months old. But he needs a desinfecting salve and a friend promised I could get it here for free. Please, I don't want him to be arrested for helping me out."

Mary eyed the herbs in Alison's hands. "You need a desinfecting ointment? Then you shouldn't use saffron, but goldenseal and… Hang on," she stood up on her toes to grab another herb from a box. "Slippery elm."

She got back up to hand the elm to Alision when she noticed the girl was eyeing her tiny bump with interest. "Are you expecting… a child?"

Mary could not suppress a grin. "Yeah."

Alison looked genuinely surprised. "Sirius Black becoming a father? Well, have I ever… You wrapped him around your little finger in the end, then."

"Well, the pregnancy wasn't planned. It was an accident, but a happy one."

"I see," she said when her eyes fell on Mary's engagement ring. "And about to get married too, I see. My my, _that_ must have made his mother's day."

Mary chuckled. "Not quite, I can tell you. But enough about me, how about you: you're a mum too! Are you married?"

Alison's eyes – which momentarily had become as warm and joyful as they used to be – turned cold and distant. "No. His dad – unfortunately – passed away right before Blaise was born."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

She shrugged. "He was wealthy, so at least we inherited a lot of money."

Mary frowned, wondering if she should respond to this, but after a moment of silence she decided that it wasn't her business anyway. She smiled and handed the bundle of slippery elm to Alison. "Here, take this. And if you leave the hospital right away, I promise I won't file a report about you breaking in, or force you to confess the name of the Healer who helped you."

Alison gave her a half-smile and reached for the elm. The sleeve of her robes fell back in the process and Mary spotted a remarkable tatoo on her wrist. A black one, with the image of a slow moving skull: the Dark Mark.

Mary gasped and dropped the elm to the floor. Alison frowned at her until she noticed what had happened. She quickly stood up straight before nonchalantly shaking the sleeve back over her wrist. Alison looked back and rolled her eyes when she noticed Mary was reaching for her wand. "Don't be stupid, Mary. I wouldn't be right in my head to attack you. I haven't forgotten your talent in duelling just yet."

Mary stared at her, hardly believing her own eyes and ears. Alison, an old friend from Hogwarts and Zabini's niece, had joined the _Death Eaters_? What happened to make her cross over to the dark side? "Alison…" she stammered. "Wh… Why?"

"I have my reasons."

"But joining _him_, after he personally murdered your father?"

"I am sure the Dark Lord had his reasons as well."

"But _why_ would you join an organization that contradicts everything you believe in?"

She scowled. "Oh Mary, do I really have to explain that?"

When Mary didn't stop staring at her, she rolled her eyes again. "Fine, I'll tell you why. It is – and always has been – a matter of surviving. Back at Hogwarts, you girls were the most popular students in our year. I knew I would be safe and sound if I hung out with you lot. And nowadays… Becoming a Death Eater has ensured my survival."

Mary shook her head vehemently. "I doubt Voldemort-", she ignored Alison's shudder when she mentioned her master's name, "-will see it that way. If he finds out you only joined his group to survive the war…"

"Now hang on a minute," Alison interrupted. "I never said I don't agree with the Dark Lord's quest. And aren't you doing the very same thing? Joining the Order, that must have provided you some protection."

"More like the opposite," Mary replied shortly. "And at least we're fighting for the good cause."

"What makes you think that we don't believe _we_ are the good guys here?"

Mary crossed her arms. "How did you-?"

"-Know about the Order of the Phoenix?" Alison finished the question for her. "Ooooh, we know all about what Albus Dumbledore and his minions are up to."

"If you're talking about that spy, I have news for you: we are on to him."

Mary was bluffing and not doing a very good job, because Alison made a scornful sound. "Sure you are."

"Does Zabini know you're a Death Eater?" Mary asked, changing the subject.

"No," she replied. "I haven't had contact with him ever since my father died. Which is probably for the best. He'd sent me straight to Azkaban if he knew, I'm sure."

"And Peter?"

Alison shot her a long look. "How much do you know about Peter and me?"

"Not much," Mary was forced to admit. "Only that you dated for a while a couple of years ago."

Alison jumped off the ladder and Mary made sure she was keeping her hand near her wand, just in case. Alison shot her another look and dropped the collected herbs in her pocket: "We stopped going out ages ago, which doesn't mean I've never spoken to him since then. But I suggest you talk to him if you want some answers."

Mary frowned at Alison's response,and when she tried to pass her, Mary held her back. "Who was it that let you in here tonight?"

Alison's smile never reached her eyes. "Like I said, can't tell you."

"Is there a spy in St. Mungo's?" Mary inquired.

"Mary, the Dark Lord's spies are _everywhere_. In the hospital and any other organization."

"Like the Ministry?"

"Like the Ministry, and the Order."

"More than one, you mean?"

Alison raised her arms. "Who knows? All I'm saying is that if you care about your and your baby's life, get the hell out of here. Before it's too late."

She turned to leave, but Mary raised her wand. "Where do you think you're going?" she called.

Alison turned back. "Mary, let's make a deal here. I have no intention in hurting you at this time and I need to bring these herbs to someone right now."

Mary narrowed her eyes. "They're not for your child, are they?"

She stared at her for a moment, but in the end she shook her head. "We need them for another purpose."

"'We' as in Death Eaters?"

"That's right."

Mary's mind was working overtime while pondering over what to do next. Here she was pointing her wand at an unarmed Alison – a former friend and current Death Eater - and she knew she was supposed to get her arrested, but for some odd reason, her instincts told her she was going to regret that decision later on. So instead, she slowly lowered her wand and shot Alison a cool look. "Fine. I will let you walk out of here with those herbs if, and _only_ if you tell me who let you in the larder and how long that person has been working for your side."

Alison stared at her, considering her proposition. At last, she nodded shortly. "Fine: Winchelsey, he has been an informant for about a year."

Mary's eyes widened in shock. "_Winchelsey?_"

She nodded. "I gave you the information you wanted. Now I must leave. See you later," she said before immediately disapparating with a loud crack.

Mary leaned back against a rack and closed her eyes. Winchelsey was an informant for the Death Eaters? She never expected that from him, not even in her wildest dreams. Sure, she disliked – even loathed – that annoyingly sweaty Healer who couldn't stop staring at her legs, but that he was siding with Voldemort? It was a revelation that made her realize that _no one_ could be fully trusted. Not at St. Mungo's, not at the Ministry; not even everyone in the Order (for some reason, she believed Alison when she said that the Order-spy was still alive and kicking). Mary realized she had to inform the others about what had happened. She considered going to Zabini, Moody and even Dumbledore, but in the end Mary went straight to the only Order member who also personally knew Winchelsey: Edgar Bones.

End of Update

**A/N You'll learn more about the mysterious symbols on the parchment and that bloody Cup in the next chapter, so stay tuned. I hope you liked this update. Don't forget to leave a review, thanks! –Mara.**

**P.S. Here's a teaser of what's coming next:**

_Once again Brice did not reply at first. __She simply looked from the note to her notes and back. "Merlin's Beard."_

"What is it?" Lily asked curiously.

Brice shot a stunned look at Lily before hitting herself on the forehead. "Of course… of course! Didn't you guys ever wonder why they call it the Cup of Assiduity?"

Mary and Lily exchanged a puzzled look before shaking their heads.

Brice leaned in a little closer. "How would you define assiduity?"

"Diligent, humble, arduous…" Mary enumerated thoughtfully.

"Patient, kind, loyal, ehm…" Lily tried to replenish.

"Indeed," Brice said, nodding. "And what if I asked you which Hogwarts house resembles these characterizations best?"


	65. The Mission To Esha Ness

Chapter Sixty-Five

**Chapter ****Sixty-Five**

"What do you think is going to happen to Winchelsey?"

Lily was looking up from reading a front page article in the Daily Prophet on the Winchelsey-trial. Ever since the media learned that the well respected St. Mungo's-Healer had been accused of assisting and repeatedly informing the Death Eaters, they - the newspaper as well as WWN and the Quibbler (who was initiating that Winchelsey was in fact not Winchelsey, but a Death Eater impersonating him) – were following his case from day to day. The suspect himself claimed that he had been under the influence of the Imperius Curse, but Mary and Edgar didn't think that excuse was all that plausible.

Mary, who was visiting Lily with Brice and sat across her at the kitchen table while cutting fruits for a salad, shrugged. "I dunno. The fact that Winchelsey claims he has been imperiused could have worked if it weren't for the fact that he's constantly changing his story about which presumed Death Eater cast the curse on him. You'd think he'll earn a one way ticket to Azkaban, but Alison has vanished and Winchelsey has many contacts at the Ministry..."

"Who could be secret informants as well," Lily noted.

"Exactly," Mary replied as she tossed a couple of strawberries into a large bowl. "Which could very well mean that sweaty creep will escape his punishment in the end. Oh well, we'll see. When will the guys be back?"

The girls were on their own this afternoon. Alice, Frank and Neville were on a mini-break, Lily's parents had taken Harry to the zoo and James, Sirius, Remus and Peter joined a few Order members on a mission to the Scottish island of Skye to investigate a chain of caves which could lead them to more clues about the Egyptian Cup. Brice had studied the map in Coptic Egyptian for the last two weeks and was halfway deciphering the document. She had already managed to discover words like North, sea, rocky, coast and cave, which led Dumbledore to believe that Voldemort might be using distant caves to hide his prized possessions.

Meanwhile, Mary and Lily truly enjoyed watching Brice – surrounded by large piles of ancient-looking books and crumpled parchment – while she was working on the map. It was like they were back at Hogwarts, when their friend could spend hours on solving a Daily Prophet crossword puzzle. She was wearing that very same focused expression now, biting her lip and determined to crack the complicated code and by that: solve the mystery.

When Lily got up to make more tea and Mary handed her their mugs, her eyes fell on Mary's stomach, whose bump was still quite small, but was becoming more visible by the week. She grinned. "Look at you and your cute little bump. How's Sirius dealing with it?"

"He cannot keep his hands of me," Mary replied. She snorted. "Not that he ever could anyway, but now his attention is completely focused on my growing stomach. He keeps kissing it. It's kinda scary, really."

Lily, who had walked to the sink and was using her wand to boil the water, laughed. "You wait until he starts talking to your belly, now _that's_ weird."

Mary, who was about to peel a banana by wand, arched an eyebrow. "Talking?"

"Yup, James used to do it all the time. But how about you, how are you feeling?"

"Not so bad, actually. The nausea has finally disappeared, which – despite your yummy potion – is a true blessing."

Lily smiled and put the steaming mugs of tea on the table. "I know. If I were you, I'd cherish the upcoming months. It's the period of being pregnant and still able to do anything you want. After that it gets really exhausting, but let's not get into that just yet."

Mary smiled back and was about to reply when they got distracted by Brice, who gasped and clapped her hand in front of her mouth. "What!?" an alarmed Mary and Lily called at the same time.

But Brice didn't seem to hear them. Instead, she had started to hastily scribble down strange-looking symbols on a piece of parchment while mumbling: "No, that cannot be right… No… It cannot be…"

"Brice," Lily repeated. "What's going on? Did you crack the code?"

After another moment of frowning while intently staring at what she had written down, Brice finally looked up at her. "Sorry?"

"Did you translate the Egyptian Coptic?"

"I…" she replied hesitantly while looking back down at her notes and scratching her chin with the end of her quill. "I think so. But if this is really what the note means, the guys are searching in the wrong place."

"What does it say?" Mary asked.

"Coptic Egyptian is a symbolic language, but this letter seems to be nothing more than an ordinary map. Some kind of instruction to bring that Cup to safety, we were right about that. Seems like this thing really did drop out of a Death Eater's pocket."

"Unless it was dropped there on purpose," Mary remarked, frowning thoughtfully.

Brice rolled her eyes. "Sometimes I can really see Sirius's paranoid nature rubbing off on you."

"Sirius is not paranoid!"

"He can be, Mary, and you know it. And honestly, imagine Voldemort's response when he discovers that one of his loyal subjects dropped a handy itinerary in a Gringotts vault where it's bound to be picked up by a Ministry presentative. The Ministry, with its hundred of specialized Rhunes-experts…"

Mary couldn't think of anything to contradict her argument and shrugged moodily instead. Brice, realizing she had won this discussion, smirked and said: "The thing is, the guys are currently off "hiking" on Skye, which is situated way up North while the directions on this map point to Esha Ness, which can be also be found in the North. North_west_, that is."

"Hang on," Lily said. "Esha Ness… Isn't that a village on the Shetland Islands?"

"It's a small coastal town that is surrounded by cliffs and caves," Brice nodded. "There's also more info about the Cup in the letter, but I can't seem to put these symbols in perspective, unless…"

After another tense moment of silence when Brice was comparing several symbol translations with each other, Lily asked: "Unless what?"

Once again Brice did not reply at first. She simply looked from the note to her notes and back. "Merlin's Beard."

"What is it?"

Brice shot her a stunnedlook before hitting herself on the forehead. "Of course… of course! Didn't you guys ever wonder why they call it the Cup of Assiduity?"

Mary and Lily exchanged a puzzled look before shaking their heads.

Brice leaned in a little closer. "How would you define assiduity?"

"Diligent, humble, arduous…" Mary enumerated thoughtfully.

"Patient, kind, loyal, ehm…" Lily tried to replenish.

"Indeed," Brice said, nodding seriously. "And what if I asked you which Hogwarts house resembles these characterizations best?"

Mary finally understood what Brice was talking about. "Hufflepuff," she whispered.

Brice banged her hand on the table. "Yeah, exactly."

But Lily didn't seem to be entirely convinced by this. "Hufflepuff?" she said increduously. "You think the Cup of Assiduity is a mere synonym for Hufflepuff's Cup?"

"Think about it, Lil," Mary said thoughtfully. "It all fits. Remember that History of Magic-class when Binns went on and on about the four powerful magical objects, prizes if you will, of Hogwarts? If I remember correctly, he mentioned something about that specific Cup being transported to Egypt around 1945 to be placed in a tomb and guard its pharao, or something among those lines."

Lily stared at her. "How can you still remember all those little facts?"

Mary shrugged. "Selective photographic memory," she said modestly.

"But why would Voldemort – _if_ that Cup was in his possession around that time – sell such a trophy to Egypt?"

"I don't know, Lil," Mary said. "I'm not a Dark wizard, but perhaps Voldemort knew the Cup would be safe until he needed it again and could retrieve it in a later stage if he wanted?"

Lily nodded thoughtfully. "Hmm, maybe…"

Meanwhile, Brice had gone back to studying the note for any further clues. When she gasped again, Mary and Lily shot her a worried look. "What now?" Lily asked.

"I wasn't completely wrong after all. The Death Eaters placed the Cup in a cave on Skye a few months ago. But they're planning on only keeping the Cup in Esha Ness until they move it to a new location," Brice explained.

"When?"

She sighed. "According to this letter: "tunAit", tonight."

Mary and Lily stared at Brice. "Are you absolutely sure?" Mary asked.

"Positive."

Brice's confirmation was followed by an uneasy silence. Mary thought of the guys who were all on Skye, waisting their time by looking for clues on the wrong island. They would find nothing there except a wild and impressive scenery. And in the meantime, the Cup could be transferred again. Mary sighed and thoughtfully caressed her bump for a moment, but she looked up when Brice had stopped drumming her fingers on the table and was getting up. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm going to Esha Ness," she said resolutely.

"What? _Why_?"

"I'll go there to collect that Cup."

Mary shot an alarmed look at Lily, who looked equally worried. "Brice, you can't go there all by yourself."

"I have to," Brice replied stubbornly. "I sent the guys to Skye, and now I need to set things straight."

"Whatever happened to warning them by sending a Patronus or owl?" Mary objected.

Brice had just "acciod" her travelling cloak and was pointing out of the window. "The sun has already started to set. They would never get there on time. I don't mind going on my own, but I _am_ going. End of story."

Mary and Lily helplessly witnessed how Brice stuffed her wand and the map in her robes. Lily seemed to be speechless for the moment, but Mary wasn't giving up that quickly. "Am I the only one who thinks this is a very bad idea?"

"Brice…" Lily said almost pleadingly. "You don't know what's out there, how many Death Eaters are guarding the Cup. There could be dragons and Merlin knows what else."

This possible threat didn't seem to impress Brice that much. "If there really are dragons, a small number of people is an advantage. Look, like I said, you guys don't have to come. In fact, Mary, I'd rather you don't, because you're pregnant."

Mary didn't know what else she could say or do to stop Brice and neither, so it seemed, did Lily. But right when Brice was walking out of the kitchen, she suddenly rose and said: "I'll join you."

"Lily!" Mary called, looking both shocked and indignant at the same time.

Her friend shot her a guilty look. "I cannot let Brice go on her own, Mare. We have a better chance on succeeding in intercepting that Cup if we're together."

"But… But what about Harry?"

"Harry will be safe, even if something bad happens. And I'm sure it's going to be fine, but I have a feeling that Brice shouldn't go there alone," Lily said as she also put on her travelling cloak.

"We should go now," Brice said. "Mary, don't forget to fill in the others when they get back, alright?"

Mary nodded absent-mindedly, inwardly torn on what she was supposed to do. She did not want to let Lily and Brice go to Esha Ness on their own. Something about that map just wasn't right, no matter what Brice was saying. Mary realized that she would be jeopordizing the life of her unborn child, but on the other hand… She was the best tracker and dueller of all of them. And she had a distinct feeling she was going to need this talent if she joined them on this quest. Nevertheless – even though every fiber in her body was objecting and telling her she was making a mistake -, right when Brice and Lily were walking out of the door, she suddenly heard herself say: "Wait."

The three girls apparated in the middle of a deserted beach on Esha Ness. The first thing they did was buttoning up their robes. Contrary to the pleasantly warm weather in London, it was much cooler on the island. The strong and salty sea wind made them shiver, even though it was the middle of September. The violent sea was pounding on the nearby cliffs, sending drops of water into the air which were being carried by the wind and ended up on their faces and clothes. "Now what?" Lily asked while looking around the beach. "We should probably head to a more sheltered spot instead of hanging out in such an open space."

Brice shrugged and pulled the map out of her pocket. She unfolded and tried to read it, but the constant gusts of wind made this a difficult task. The fragile papyrus was fluttering ardently and only when Lily cast a wind-shielding charm, Brice could read the content. She frowned thoughtfully while trying to decipher two complicated-looking symbols. "Hey, can you guys spot a cave with the face of a bird?"

Lily was staring intently at the nearest cliff. "That one right there looks just like a hawk."

Mary narrowed her eyes slightly and laughed. "That's not a hawk, that's a pheasant."

"Pheasants don't have "beaks" like that."

"Hawks don't have "tails" like that."

Brice sniggered. "Guys, knock it off! This symbol is referring to poultry in general, not a specific kind of bird."

Lily rubbed her nose. "Oh, right. In that case, I'd put my money on that cliff."

Mary and Brice agreed and they slowly made their way over to the cliff. The entrance (if there was one at all) was either closed or concealed by magic. Neither of the revealing spells they used resulted in the appearance of a secret passage. After an indecisive moment in which they all stared at the wall of solid rock, inwardly begging it to move, Mary looked at the top of the cliff and spotted a narrow lane. "We should try to get in that way," she said before using a ridge to pull herself up.

Brice and Lily followed and once they were standing on the path, Mary led the way to what she thought could be a hidden entrance to the cave. The walk was (the least to say) thrilling: the path led them straight to the end of the cliff and was extremely narrow and slippery: even though they were very careful, they kept skidding on the slippery rocks, which – considering the feral sea about thirty-three feet beneath them - was simply terrifying. At last Mary spotted a narrow hole in the wall, only a few feet above them. She used another ridge to ascend the steep slope and crawled through the dark hole, ending up in a remarkably wide, but dark passage. Mary immediately recognized the characteristic scent of a cave; it was filled with muggy and moist air and most of all: the smell of wet rocks.

Once Lily and Brice had joined Mary, the three of them decided to take the risk and create a little light. _"Lumos,"_ they whispered as one and the tips of their wands illuminated. The passage they were standing in was high – with a large group of snoozing bats hanging from the ceiling – and wide. After a short moment of hesitation, Brice wanted to take the lead but Mary held her back. "I better go first."

"Why?"

"Because I'm the best tracker and will spot possible dangers a fraction of a second earlier than you. And if this ominous grotto turns out to be Voldemort's secret boot camp, that moment might very well be the difference between life or death."

Brice didn't agree and was just opening her mouth to retort when Lily seconed Mary. "She's right, Brice. Let Mary go first."

Brice rolled her eyes and muttered: "After you, miss duelling princess."

Mary decided not to respond to that sneer and walked down the cave, holding her wand in front of her so that she could see where they were going. They walked on for about an hour with nothing noteworthy happening at all: the passage occassionally turned off right or left but remained high and easily accessible. They came across one division and decided to go left there. Finally, after another few minutes of walking, they reached a subterranean river. But this was no ordinary underground stream: it was sixteen feet wide and full of floating dead bodies.

Lily groaned. "Inferi. I hate inferi."

Mary walked to the edge of the river. "Could there be another way to cross this thing?"

Brice stepped up beside her and sniggered. "I'm unable to spot a bridge anywhere near, you?"

Even Lily couldn't suppress a giggle. "Doesn't your map provide a solution for that?"

When Brice had consulted the note, she shook her head. "No, but we all know what scares Inferi: fire."

Mary and Lily nodded. "All three together?"

Lily also stepped up to the river bank and the three of them pointed their wands at the exact same spot in the water. _"Incendio!"_

An immense wall of fire erupted from their wands. It forced back the inferi far enough to safely wade through the water. As soon as they had crawled onto the opposite bank and lifted spell, the creepy undead creatures drifted back into place.

But Mary, Lily and Brice were no longer paying attention to them. They had already moved on, even though they had absolutely no idea where the path was leading them. They didn't come across further obstacles on the way and finally, after another long walk, they reached the end of the passage. "Make sure you stay behind me," Mary whispered before carefully entering the centre of the cave.

It turned out to be a remarkably large and idle hall. The space seemed to be deserted and completely empty with the exception of a small pond near the other end. The water appeared to be misleadingly calm, as if it wasn't guarding a strange island of an artistic-looking pile of large, smooth and elongated cobbles. Mary's gaze slowly ascended stone by stone and there, at the very top of the high pile, stood a small golden cup with finely wrought handles: Hufflepuff's Cup.

End of Update

**A/N A cliffie? Nope, I can't see it. Cliffs yes, but a cliffie? (hides behind keyboard) Haha, please don't hate me! Okay, to make it up to you guys: here's a teaser of what is coming next:**

"_I know," Lily whispered back. "I feel it too."_

Mary nodded and clutched her wand. "It's not safe here."

Brice sighed and pushed Mary's arm down. "What do you want to do, then? Remain standing here until the Death Eaters show up to move that Cup again? Because that is what's going to happen."

When she made another attempt to step up, Mary got seriously annoyed with her. "Brice! I _said__-"_

The very moment Mary took her eyes off the sight to tell Brice off, she heard a rushing sound right next to her ear: a powerful spell that hit her friend squarely in the chest. The force made Brice tumble backwards through the air until she crashed into a wall and fell down on the ground, apparently unconscious. Mary looked at Lily: the two of them gazed at each other in utter shock and fear for a moment until they heard four loud cracks.


	66. Trapped

Chapter Sixty-Six:

**Chapter Sixty-Six:**

Mary stared at the cup in awe. Something about the shimmering image looked surreal (and she wasn't talking about the remarkable island of stones), but she couldn't place her finger on it. If someone asked her now, she'd say that she was looking at a poor replica, but that could not be right, or could it? Mary wasn't the only one who was noticing something weird about the Cup. "Is it me, or is something missing there?" Lily asked.

Brice shot her a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"If that really is Hufflepuff's Cup, then why is no one – Death Eaters or creatures - guarding it?"

Brice nodded. "Yeah, that _is_ highly unusual. Better be prepared, I say."

Lily nodded and narrowed her eyes. "And Mare, that island… It's odd, but doesn't that remind you of…?"

"Aladdin," Mary finished for her, because she had only just concluded what that weird island was reminding her of.

"Exactly," Lily nodded, but Brice looked clueless. "Ala-what?"

"Aladdin, it's a Muggle fairytale about an Arabian street-boy who finds a lamp in a tomb. When he rubs it, a genie emerges and…" Mary stopped explaining when she noticed that Brice's confused frown wasn't exactly decreasing. "Never mind, it's completely irrelevant."

"Alright…" Brice said slowly. She looked back at the island. "We need to figure out a way to get hold of that Cup."

She was about to walk forward when Mary instinctively held out her arm. "Stop."

Brice rolled her eyes. "Not this again, Mary. I'm pretty sure it's safe to approach that subterranean pond and that's all I'm going to do, I promise."

But Mary didn't lower her arm. She had the distinct feeling they were being watched by hostile eyes. "Something's off," she whispered.

"I know," Lily whispered back. "I feel it too."

Mary nodded and clutched her wand. "It's not safe here."

Brice sighed and pushed Mary's arm down. "What do you want to do, then? Remain standing here until the Death Eaters show up and move that Cup again? Because that is what's going to happen."

When she made another attempt to step up, Mary got seriously annoyed with her. "Brice, I _said_-"

The very moment Mary took her eyes off the sight to tell her off, she heard a rushing sound right next to her ear: a powerful spell that hit her friend squarely in the chest. The force made Brice tumble backwards through the air until she crashed into a wall and fell down on the ground, apparently unconscious. Mary looked at Lily: the two of them gazed at each other in utter shock and fear until they heard four loud cracks.

Four Death Eaters had apparated right in front of them. With Brice out, Mary and Lily were now outnumbered by two. Nevertheless, they fought back bravely even though they didn't stand a chance. Mary had just dodged three or four Avada Kedavra-curses when she realized that the Death Eaters weren't out to catch them this time, but to kill them if they got the chance.

As by some miracle, Lily took out one of the Death Eaters with a Stinging Hex and continued to duel her other opponent without looking back. Mary was still fighting two of them at the same time, until suddenly Brice (with a bump the size of an egg on the back of her head) jumped in to join the fight.

They were now duelling one on one. All they had to do now was to somehow outsmart the remaining Death Eaters and get out before their enemies summoned some of their friends. But Mary's opponent was quick, cunning and strong. He had already driven her towards a steep slope. Mary tried to duel and keep her balance at the same time. She was doing fine for a while, until the Death Eater finally managed to magically push her over the ridge. Mary could feel she was about to roll down the hill. "But I won't be going down _alone_," she thought grimly and conjured an invisible lasso and cast it around his arm. This caught the Death Eater by complete surprise, and together they tumbled down the sandy slope; faster and faster until they finally landed on the bottom with a loud thud.

To say Mary was feeling disorientated was an understatement. Her head spinned and she was panting heavily while trying to locate her wand, which she had lost somewhere on the way down. She couldn't see it anywhere, but what she did find was the Death Eater's mask. Whoever had been fighting her, his identity would no longer be concealed. When Mary was sitting up on her knees, she spotted a pair of shoes right in front of her. Her gaze slowly rose – she noticed her opponent was holding her wand on the way – until she had finally reached his face. Mary gasped. This Death Eater was no other than Severus Snape. "S-s-severus?" she stammered.

Snape did not reply and slowly aimed his wand at her chest. His dark and unfathomable eyes were glinting and her heart was racing when she realized he was about to seriously hurt or even kill her, but then his gaze dropped to her bump. For a moment, Snape simply stared down at her stomach while trying to work out whose child it could be. But right when Mary wanted to inform him it was Sirius's baby, Snape seemed to have come to that conclusion himself. He scowled and his eyes turned even colder. Mary – expecting the worst - braced herself, but Snape did not curse her. Instead, he handed her wand back. Mary took it from him, looking flabbergasted. "Wh-what, why?"

"Just get the hell out of here," Snape said softly before casting a nervous look at the top of the slope, where the battle still hadn't come to an end. He looked back and shot her an angry look. "What are you waiting for? Run!"

She didn't needed to be told twice. Mary crawled back to her feet and sprinted to a nearby cliff. She hoped that slope would be a way to escape, although she had no idea where it was leading her. When Mary finally reached the top and crawled over the ridge, she noticed she was standing in the exact same passage they had used to get here. Mary thought off running away when she realized she didn't know what happened to Brice and Lily.

Mary hesitated. Was she supposed to go back and help the others or escape to find help? She was just turning back when she heard a couple of footsteps approaching fast. Mary prepared to get back into duelling, but to her immense relief it wasn't a Death Eater who rounded the corner, but Brice. "Hurry!" her friend yelled as she hurried towards her.

Mary quickly turned around and started to run as well. The two of them sprinted through the hallway on top speed. "Where is Lily?" Mary called back over her shoulder.

"Right behind me," Brice called back.

Mary nodded and continued to run. Even though she was out of breath, the thought of Death Eaters – including Severus Snape – chasing them down a corridor was enough to keep her going. Finally, when they had reached the subterranean river of Inferi, Mary slowed down. It was only then that she noticed Lily wasn't with them at all. "Brice!" Mary yelled, feeling both frustrated and worried at the same time. "You said Lily was right behind you!"

"She was just a minute ago!" Brice called back, looking equally worried.

"Oh no, they must have caught her."

Brice bit her lip. "What now?"

Mary stared at Brice, panting. After a moment of hesitation, she had made up her mind. "Okay," she said and wiped her hair out of her face. "You get out of here to find help. I'll go get Lily."

Brice shot a doubtful look at her stomach. "Don't you think I should-"

"No," she said resolutely. "Just… Go and get the guys."

"How will you-?"

"I'll figure out something, somehow… Hang on," Mary said as she pointed her wand at the bump on Brice's head. "_Minuoffa_. Now go!"

"Thanks, I'll try to somehow create a diversion," Brice said while casting _Incendio_ on the water. "Just be careful," she whispered.

Mary nodded and watched Brice cross the river. When she could hear the sound of approaching Death Eaters, she apparated back to the last corner of the passage before the hall, crossing her fingers she wouldn't land either in front or on top of another Death Eater. Thankfully, no one seemed to be there. Mary tiptoed to the entrance, but stopped abruptly when she noticed that not only more Death Eaters had been summoned to the scene, but also Voldemort himself, who was currently circling the island. Mary's heart missed a beat when she saw that a terrified-looking Lily was being pushed back against a wall by a tall Death Eater, her hands tied together.

Mary knew she was going to have to save her, but how? Voldemort seemed too busy to kill her friend for the moment, but how much longer would that take him? Mary's eyes nervously scanned the hall. There had to be another way. She spotted a narrow path that leaded to a small but sheltered ridge, several feet high but also right above Lily. Mary didn't waste anymore time and started to climb the path carefully, constantly keeping an eye on what was happening below her.

When Mary had safely reached the ridge, she finally dared to glance down. Voldemort was now interrogating one of his Death Eaters. Mary was just wondering if Brice would have reached the Order by now when she realized she was closer to Hufflepuff's Cup than ever before. She looked up. And that's when she saw it. This trophy was not Hufflepuff's Cup, it wasn't even a cup: it was just a hologram. _That's_ why it had looked so surreal and shimmering before: it was just a simple bait to lure them into an ambush. And it had worked…

Mary inwardly cursed Brice for her stubborness before glancing back down. If only she would know how to perform Legillimency… If that Death Eater let go of Lily for just a second, she could apparate next to Mary. And then they could disapparate back to the entrance of the cave and find a way out. "Lil, look up. I'm right here," Mary telepathically tried to tell her friend.

It didn't work at first. "Come on," Mary pleaded silently, crossing her fingers that Voldemort wasn't picking up the message instead. "Look up, look up, look up, damn it - look _up_!"

But then – and Mary had to blink twice to see if she wasn't just imagining it – Lily momentarily looked straight at her. Their eyes met shortly and Mary then could clearly hear Lily's voice in her head, saying: _"My hands are bound, I cannot do anything."_

Mary took a deep breath and feverishly focused on passing her another message. "Wait until that Death Eater gets distracted and apparate right next to me."

_"Distracted?"_ Lily's voice resounded in her head. _"But how…?"_

But she even didn't get a chance to finish that sentence. Suddenly four loud bangs took them all (including the Death Eaters) by surprise. The explosions took place right after each other and seemed to come from the passage they had used to get into the cave. The outcome of the detonations were effective immediately. A large cloud of mortar burst out of the passage with force, small stones from the ceiling of the hall rained down on them and the ground was shaking violently beneath their feet. Mary suddenly realized that these explosions could very well be Brice's diversion. Or perhaps the guys had finally come to rescue them! For the first time that night, she actually dared to hope they would make it out of this hell alive.

Meanwhile, the group of Death Eaters – including the wizard who had been pushing Lily back against the wall – had all gathered around Voldemort. Lily didn't hesitate and managed to disapparate. As soon as she had appeared on the ridge, Mary used the few seconds of utter confusion downstairs to summon Lily's wand from a Death Eater's pocket. It flew right back at her and Mary caught it while simultaneously grabbing Lily's arm to disapparate, right when a green jet of light hit a rock next to her head, exploding into a hundred pieces.

When they apparated next to the narrow entrance of the cave, the hole seemed to be gone. In fact, the entire front wall had been blown out by the force of the explosion. The biggest part of the passage was now blocked by stones and dust, which meant they were relatively safe from Voldemort or the Death Eaters for the moment. After Mary had cut the rope on the wrists, Lily carefully walked to the edge of the cliff. "That is a long way down…"

Mary nodded and scanned the remains of the wall for a safer way to get down. "Not to mention the cold sea we'll be jumping into. I suggest we disapparate to a distant part of the beach, or even better: London."

"But what about Brice?" Lily asked.

"Good point," Mary groaned. "Okay, let's just go to the beach instead. I think Brice should be there as well. And from there we can-"

Mary stopped talking mid-sentence when she heard a mysterious rumbling sound, coming from the inside of the cave and approaching very fast. "Lil…" she said suspiciously. "What is that?"

Lily took a cautious step towards the blocked passage and peeked through it. Only a few seconds later – when the rumbling was becoming louder and louder, she jumped back in alarm, stumbling, and turned around fast. "Get away from there, now, hurry!" she cried as she ran towards the edge of the cliff and pulled Mary along in the process.

But it was already too late. The blocked passage exploded right behind them when they were jumping off the cliff. An ominous cloud of icy blue smoke erupted from the gap and overtook them when they were in mid-air. Mary couldn't tell for sure what got them at first, but when they were soaring down towards the water, she already knew it was a horrible curse. Being hit by the cloud felt just like she had plunged into the middle of the Arctic Sea, a powerful rush of freezing cold that took her by surprise.

By the time Mary had reached the water, the icy curse – in combination with the cold and feral sea - had already started to spread through her body. The cold caused her muscles to cramp which made it barely impossible to move. Mary was fighting hard to keep her head above the water, but she quickly realized that she was going to lose this battle. Her lined robes that had been a blessing before had become heavy and were dragging her down. Mary could now hardly move her arms and legs anymore. When she realized she was about to go underwater, Mary took one last deep breath before perishing like a simple brick.

Mary sank and sank while her numb mind was trying to comprehend that she was actually drowning and would be dead in a few minutes. Even though she was kicking and screaming on the inside, her limbs still weren't responding to what she was asking them to do and remained motionless. But then Lily suddenly appeared beside her, who grabbed her under her arms and slowly swam back up. Mary gasped for air when they finally surfaced. Lily was still keeping her palsied body above water. "Are you okay?" she yelled, coughing and panting heavily.

Mary wanted to tell her that she couldn't move, but no sound came out when she opened her mouth to speak. The icy curse had also paralyzed, or perhaps frozen was a better word, her vocal cords. Inwardly Mary started to freak out. Lily had been struck by the very same cloud, why wasn't it affecting her just as much? And what would happen to the baby if no one could cast a counter-charm on time? Would she lose her unborn child?

When Lily noticed that Mary was unable to reply, she made sure she got an even firmer grip on her before reaching for her wand. From the corner of her eye, Mary could see the clear image of a graceful doe shooting out of the tip: Lily's Patronus.

All they could do now was float around until James and the others showed up. But Lily wasn't planning to wait that long. She had already conjured a rope and was trying to cast it around a pointy rock on a nearby bank. She succeeded after only three attempts. "Good old Lil," Mary thought. She had known for years that Lily had an impressive aim, even though her friend always refused to tell James. She used to fear he would force her to join the Gryffindor Quidditch Team if he knew.

Meanwhile, Lily had beaten the powerful undercurrent and slowly pulled them towards a narrow rocky bank. She got out of the water first before also pulling Mary – shivering badly but still unable to move - on shore. She kneeled down next to her and put a trembling hand on her shoulder. "Mary," she sobbed, "Please. It's gonna be alright. Just don't die on me. Please don't die."

Mary noticed she had also started to have more and more trouble to breathe properly. For a few terrifying minutes, she actually thought she was going to die right then and there, but then-

"Lily!?"

Lily's head jerked up and she looked straight at the top of the cliff. "Oh, thank God," she whispered in utter relief before crying: "James, James! We're down here!"

Only a few seconds later, Mary heard a crack. And then another one. And another one until James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Marlene and Elphias had all apparated on that small rocky bank. The next thing Mary knew, Sirius was crouching down next to her. He looked horrified when he put a warm hand on her cheek. "Merlin no," he stammered. "Mare, what happened?"

Mary would have liked to fill him in on everything, but since she was still unable to move or speak and needed all her energy to keep breathing, she only managed to cough up water as a reply. Sirius looked at Lily. "What on earth happened?" he repeated anxiously.

Lily, who was being comforted by James, sobbed. "I don't know. We got hit by the exact same curse. I have no idea why it's affecting her so much more than me."

"What kind of curse?" Elphias asked.

"Some sort of weird blue cloud that erupted from a large gap after the exposion."

"Explosion!?" James called, looking horrified.

"Yes. I-"

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Marlene observed calmly. "Let's just start from the beginning."

"Start from the beginning!?" Sirius – who was wrapping his robes around Mary in an attempt to warm her up – yelled. "I don't need to hear all that. I just want to know what I must do to help her."

"How about taking her to St.Mungo's?" Peter suggested.

"No," Marlene said, shaking her head. "That would lead to some inconvenient questions."

"Where is Brice?" Remus suddenly asked quietly.

"We'll go find her later," Sirius replied impatiently. "Where do you suggest I should take her instead, then?" he asked Marlene.

She scratched her head. "Zabini? When we left his place earlier today, Edgar was still there and he told me he would be staying over for supper. He probably knows what to do."

"The striking thing is…" Elphias suddenly observed, "that Mary herself would certainly know how to heal this, but unfortunately, she is currently unable to talk."

His obvious remark got followed by a stunned and uncomfortable silence. If Mary could have laughed, she would have had a downright laughing fit. But no one else laughed or even smiled, and all she did was coughing up more water. "Thank you, Elphias, for that acute comment," Sirius said sarcastically. "But right now, I'd like to find out if I can disapparate with-"

"Guys," Remus interrupted again, "I really want to find Brice."

"Damn it, Moony!" Sirius roared and he got back up. "We _will_ look for Brice in a minute, but in case you hadn't noticed, that's my girl dying on this freaking beach!"

Remus looked shocked. "I know that, Sirius. I care about Mary too. But just apparate with her, then. If you do nothing now, she'll definitely die here."

"Remus," Lily said quietly, putting a hand on his arm. "I think Mary said something about Brice getting away and…"

Mary couldn't hear what else Lily was telling Remus, because James was suddenly leaning over her. He cupped her face with his hands and said softly: "I think you're the only one here who knows if it's safe to disapparate in your current condition. So… Please, if you're still able to blink, blink twice to confirm."

Mary understood what James was talking about and focused all her energy on blinking twice. "Fantastic," James said. "So blinking once means no, blinking twice means yes, okay?"

Mary blinked twice again as a reply. James smiled. "Can Sirius disapparate with you?"

Mary blinked twice.

"Should he take you to St.Mungo's?"

Mary wanted to reply "Not yet", but since that wasn't possible, she blinked once.

"Okay. Should he take you to Zabini, then?"

Mary reasoned that Zabini would know that casting a simple defreezing charm should probably stop the effects of the curse. She blinked twice. He nodded and got back up. "Sirius, I just checked with Mary. You can take her to Zabini."

"What?" Sirius said as he hurried back over to them. "Did you talk to her? Is she awake?"

James shook his head. "She still can't speak or move, but she _can_ blink. I asked her, it'll be fine."

Sirius nodded slowly. "You guys will be okay?"

Remus smiled weakly. "Yeah, you go. We'll stay here to find out what happened, look for Brice and meet up with you guys later."

Sirius shot him a last look, crouched down and lifted her up in one movement. Mary could feel he was shaking badly when he prepared to disapparate. Just before they apparated to Zabini's house – right when Mary was closing her eyes and hoped for the best – she heard him whisper: "Please stay with me, just stay with me…" There was a note of sheer panic in his voice and for the first time in her life, Mary realized she simply had to stay alive. Not only because of her own life and that of their unborn child, but for Sirius's sake as well.

End of Update

**A/N: Okay, this is not really a cliffie, right? I it does feel like that, sorry, but I'll try to update again soon that it doesn't really feel like a cliffie anymore. How's that? **

**Little teaser of what is coming next:**

_Sirius had walked to the other side of the room and back. His heart was racing, his mind swirling. He had always known something could happen to Mary, but in all honesty, he never ever thought it would actually happen. The thought of losing her was driving him mad. He paused to massage his temples. "Edgar," he said heavily. "__Exactly__ how sure are you?"_

Edgar cocked his head from left to right, pondering over his question. "Ninety per cent. Perhaps eighty. No wait, seventy."

Sirius desperately pulled another hand through his hair before turning back and strolling to the other end of the room. He stood there for another minute, staring at a painting of two duelling wizards without actually seeing anything at all. Then he kicked hard against the brick wall, swore loudly and turned back. "Do it."

**Reviews are more than welcome. Let me know what you guys think! I love feedback. –Mara.**


	67. Frostbite

Chapter Sixty-Seven

**Chapter Sixty-Seven**

When Sirius apparated in front of Zabini's house with a quivering Mary in his arms, there was only one thought on his mind: _Don't die, don't die, don't die, don't die._ There were about a hundred other things he liked to know (what happened? How did Mary and Lily end up on that cliff? What were they doing there in the first place?), but his first priority was to find out what kind of curse had hit Mary, how it could be lifted and if that would still be in time to save her.

And the baby's life… Sirius's stomach cringed with worry. It was kind of hard to admit, but over the last few months he had become rather fond of Mary's growing tummy and what was inside it. He had to do something right now, because Mary's condition was deteriorating by the minute. Her body felt frail. She was just hanging in his arms, her head resting against his chest only because he was keeping it there; it fell back the instant he removed his hand. Her breaths were short and faltering, her face looked white as a sheet and her body felt cold, except her forehead which glowed like she was having a severe fever.

With another shock, Sirius realized that Mary could possibly die right here in his arms. He panicked and knocked on the front door of the house, ingnoring the curious stares of a group of people slandering by. When there was no immediate answer, Sirius used his fist to bang on the door. He continued doing this until Zabini finally opened the door. His face turned from startled to shocked when his eyes fell on Mary. "What the…"

But Sirius didn't wait for him to finish that sentence. He was already walking inside, pushing Zabini aside in the process, and carried Mary straight to the living room where Edgar Bones was sitting at a table, drinking a glass of Firewhiskey. He jumped up immediately when he saw them. "Merlins Beard!" he called. "What happened?"

"We're not sure," Sirius explained as he carefully placed Mary down on the couch, who was still shivering like a delicate bundle of cane in a storm and lay perfectly still with her eyes closed. "All I know is that we found her and Lily on a cliff nearby Esha Ness. They got struck by the same curse - apparently released due to an explosion in a cave – but it's hardly affecting Lily whilst Mary is… well, she seems to be freezing and…" His voice trailed off when Mary's breath wavered again.

Edgar had already kneeled down next to her and was tapping the tip of his wand gently on her face while muttering incantations Sirius did not recognize. After watching Edgar closely for a minute, Zabini asked: "You said they were on Esha Ness. What were they doing there?"

Sirius ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I don't know. We were up on Skye doing research-"

"Did you find anything?"

"No," Sirius replied, his eyes never leaving Edgar who was now examining Mary's limp arms. "There was nothing there that had anything to do with the map. But then out of nowhere, James received Lily's Patronus. We all disapparated to Esha Ness and found them on a bank like this and…"

"Sirius," Edgar intervened calmly. "You mentioned a curse that got released by an explosion. What kind of curse was that?"

"Er… Lily said something about a cloud."

Edgar frowned. "A cloud, and you said she's freezing?"

Sirius shot another worried look at Mary, whose face and lips were slowly turning blue. "Well, that's what it looks like. I mean, she's also unable to move and speak, even when she was still awake."

Edgar scratched his head and went back to examining Mary. Sirius was starting to annoyed, it wasn't like they had all the time in the world here. "Will you hurry up!" he hissed after another tense moment of silence. "Can't you see she's dying?"

"I'm not blind, Sirius," Edgar replied placidly, not responding to his irritated remark. "And I will Heal, or at least stop the effects of the curse, Mary as soon as possible. Waiting another minute isn't going to hurt her much more. The thing is, I'm not sure what hit her, but I think it might have been Conglaciatus."

"A freezing charm?" Zabini asked.

"Yes. The curse causes hypothermia, but from the inside of the body instead of the other way around. A Conglaciatus Cloud is often used to guard valuable belongings, in art galleries for example. When an intruder gets in contact with the cloud, he will be immediately affected, there is no protective charm."

"But then why isn't Lily-?" Sirius started.

"I'm getting there," Edgar said quickly. "This is why I think they were struck by Conglaciatus. The effect of the curse depends on how long the victim remains inside the cloud. I reckon the girls's contact with it lasted only a few seconds, which is why Lily didn't get hurt. However, for a yet unknown reason, this curse is extremely dangerous to pregnant women. That explains why Lily only felt a short freezing rush, like she briefly jumped into a barrel of ice water whilst Mary is, well, freezing from the inside out."

"So why don't you just cast a defreezing charm?" Zabini inquired.

Edgar shot him a doubtful look. "Because there is a catch. I'm not sure how much damage the curse has already instigated, and if I try to defreeze her when something else is at work… Merlin knows what could happen to her, or the baby."

"Are you saying…?"

"If I cast the wrong spell, she might lose the child, or die herself."

Sirius stared at him for a moment. He swallowed with difficulty. "And if you do nothing now…"

Edgar bit his lip. "I'm sorry, mate, but then she'll definitely die."

Sirius got up and started pacing around the room. Zabini watched him for a few seconds before he looked over at Edgar. "Now wait a minute! There must be something you can do."

"I can," Edgar nodded. "If it is the Conglaciatus Curse, she'll be alright. At least I think she will, Spell Damage is not my specialty…"

Sirius had walked to the other side of the room and back. His heart was racing, his mind swirling... He had always known something could happen to Mary, but in all honesty, he never ever thought it would happen for real. The thought of losing her was driving him mad. He paused to massage his temples. "Edgar," he said heavily. "_Exactly_ how sure are you?"

Edgar cocked his head from left to right while pondering over his question. "Ninety per cent. Perhaps eighty. No wait, seventy."

Sirius desperately pulled another hand through his hair before turning back and strolling to the other end of the room. He stood there for another minute, staring at a painting of two duelling wizards without actually seeing anything at all. Then he kicked hard against the brick wall, swore loudly and turned back. "Do it."

"Are you sure?" Zabini said, frowning. "You might lose the baby."

"I know that," Sirius groaned as he walked back to the others. "But if I do nothing, Mary dies and I can't let that happen. I just… can't."

Edgar shot him a long look and nodded. He picked up his wand without another word and pointed it at Mary. He cast a non-verbal defreezing spell on her before muttering _"Revicalefactum."_ A bright orange light erupted from his wand. The glowing charm seemed to be warming her up from head to toe.

But it didn't wake her up. On the contrary, she remained completely motionless and if Sirius wasn't mistaken, she had stopped breathing. He moved his head towards her mouth to listen, and his heart stopped. He was right: she _had_ stopped breathing. Sirius shot a desperate look at Edgar. "She's not breathing, she's not breathing. Look what you did to her!"

"Sirius…" Edgar said calmly. He didn't seem shocked at all and this was enraging Sirius even more. "You _killed_ her!"

"Sirius," Edgar repeated, placidly as ever.

Sirius had now put his hands on Mary's upper arms and was shaking her fragile body. "No, no, no! Oh Merlin Mary, please… What are you- Let me go!"

Edgar had grabbed his hands and pulled them off Mary. "Sirius," he said again, but this time in a more compelling voice. "I should have told you this before, but relax: Mary is going to be fine. I was right, okay? It _was_ the Conglaciatus Curse."

Sirius stared at him, panting and utterly confused. "Bu- But then why isn't she…"

"Breathing?" Edgar finished for him. "The defreezing charm may have stopped the effects of the curse, but it did not cure the damage done. So I cast an additional charm to warm her up, but Mary has suffered a lot. Her body is basically taking a short time-out to regain the required energy to wake up."

"But she's not breathing," Zabini noted. Like Sirius, he didn't seem to be very confident about Mary making it either.

Edgar nodded. "As was to be expected. She will gain consciousness soon enough and then Sirius can take her to St.Mungo's. If I were you, I would bring her straight to Sauvage. She knows what to do, and I happen to know she's on duty tonight."

"Alright," Sirius mumbled as he kneeled down next to the couch. He started to caress Mary's face and continued doing so until he thought he was hearing her taking a breath. A short and feeble breath, but a respiration nevertheless.

Edgar had noticed it too. He put a hand on Sirius's shoulder and smiled. "Ah, she will come around any minute now."

And indeed, after another few minutes of wavering breaths, Mary's eyes suddenly shot open. Sirius had never been more relieved to see those blue eyes looking up at him. "Hey," he whispered softly, trying to hide the lump in this throat. "How are you feeling?"

Mary momentarily closed her eyes and for one terrifying moment, Sirius thought she was losing consciousness again. But then she opened her eyes once more. She blinked a couple of times, swallowed with difficulty before finally opening her mouth, just to mumble: "Ouch."

"Ouch?" he repeated anxiously. "Where? Where does it hurt?"

But she was already answering his question by clinging her hands to her stomach. Sirius was relieved to see that she could move again, but got even more concerned when he watched her curling up like a hedgehog and hugging her belly while moaning: "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow…"

"Mary," Edgar asked urgently while reaching for his wand. "Is it a nagging stomach pain or just short little cramps?"

"Cramps," Mary groaned, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Ow, it hurts so much."

After witnessing her suffer like this for another minute, Sirius made up his mind. "I'm taking you to St. Mungo's." He attempted to lift her up, but she put a hand on his chest. "No, wait."

"Shouldn't he take you to the hospital?" Zabini asked. "Is that why you let him bring you here?"

"That's not it," she panted. "Before you go to Esha Ness, there's something you need to know."

"Mary," Sirius said wearily, finally realizing what she was up to. "Lily can fill them in about everything."

"No!" she cried urgently, sitting up straight while clamping her stomach. "Lily never saw it from up close, but I did. The Cup is not real, it's a hologram."

Sirius frowned, but Zabini and Edgar stared at Mary in confusion. "That Map _did_ lead to the Cup?"

"Yes, Brice cracked the code. According to the Map, the Cup of Assiduity is Hufflepuff's Cup, but-"

"What?!" Zabini called, and even Sirius didn't know what else to say than: "Huh?"

"-But it was all a trap," Mary continued hastily. She cringed her eyes in pain before panting: "Brice and Lily will explain everything when you get there, but I thought you should know in advance that it was all a fake."

Zabini stared at her. "An ambush?"

Mary nodded, too exhausted to say anything else. Sirius noticed that she was also shivering again. "Time to go, Mare."

He tried to pick her up again and this time, she did not protest. He carried her to the middle of the room, relieved that Mary still had enough strength to wrap an arm around his neck. Zabini and Edgar had also gotten up. "I'll go to Esha Ness," Edgar said.

Zabini nodded. "And I'll head over to Hogwarts to alert Albus." He looked at Sirius. "We'll let you guys know when we find out more."

Sirius nodded and shot Mary a look. "Ready?" he asked. "On the count of three…"

He apparated right in front of the Obstetrics Ward of St. Mungo's. The last time he had been here was when Harry was born, so this location brought back many joyful memories. But there was nothing cheerful about today. He looked at Mary. "You okay?" he asked.

Mary tried to smile at him, but failed miserably. "Sirius, I..."

"Just hang in there," he replied shortly, trying to hide the concern in his voice while using his elbow to open the doors of the waiting room. One of the assistant-Healers who was sitting at the desk looked up in alarm. "Good grief, is that Mary?"

Sirius didn't have time to be polite. "Go and get Healer Sauvage, now!"

The guy jumped up and ran through the doors. He returned with Sauvage, another assistant and a brancard a few minutes later. Sirius lay Mary down on the brancard, who was about to curl up like a ball once more when the obstetrician stopped her. "Don't ever do that again."

Mary obeyed and stretched out completely on the brancard instead. She was cringing with pain. "It hurts so bad…" she cried while squeezing her eyes shut.

"I know, we're going to try and fix that," Sauvage said soothingly before ordering the assistants to take Mary to the ward. She grabbed her clipboard from under her arm and ushered Sirius to follow her. "What hit her?"

"She got struck by a cloud that causes hypothermia, but Edgar Bones managed to reverse it," he replied quickly. "I forgot the term. It's eh... Congle or something…"

"A Conglaciatus Cloud?" she informed sharply.

"Yes, that's the one."

Sauvage shook her head while scribbling down this information on the clipboard and Sirius could swear he heard her mutter "Merde" under her breath. "How long ago did this happen?"

He scratched his head. "Eh.. Approximately an hour ago?"

They had reached the doors of the ward. "I'm going to have to ask you to wait here, Sirius."

Sirius nodded and looked at Sauvage, who had placed a hand on his shoulder. "But Mary…"

"Is seriously injured, but she's in good hands."

"And what about…" He hardly dared to finish his question. "The baby?"

Sauvage nodded grimly. "We're gonna do everything we can," she said before turning around and walking through the doors.

When the doors closed right in front of his nose, Sirius remained staring at Sauvage's back who was hurrying to a room at the end of the corridor. _We'll do everything we can_?? Wasn't that what Healers always told people when their loved ones were about to die? What if Edgar was wrong and Mary was still in mortal danger? And not to mention the baby… Sirius groaned and slowly walked back to a practically deserted waiting room. He was looking at one of the uncomfortable chairs when he realized he was too wrought up to sit down anyway.

While Sirius was pacing up and down the room, he kept thinking about what happened. And the longer he was contemplating - even though he was still worried about Mary's health -, the more confused he got. Different feelings had started to mingle with his concern: anger, frustration, incomprehension. What was Mary thinking to join Lily and Brice in going to Esha Ness? Why didn't they wait until he and the other guys had returned? How could she have been so inconsiderate?

Sirius momentarily paused in his pacing to let a Healer (carrying a newborn baby in a green blanket) pass. He stared after the baby, realizing that that future prospect might have been ruined for them forever. He swore inwardly and resumed his pace. What was up with Mary anyway? It was unlike her to gamble her life and that of the baby to begin with. Being reckless and acting before thinking was _his_ part, she had always been the rational one of them.

Sirius sighed and got himself one of those numerous bad hospital-coffees. When he had sat down and was drinking his cup of rubbish, his thoughts momentarily shifted to the others on Esha Ness. What were they doing right now? Would Remus have found Brice yet? Sirius suddenly realized he had been unreasonable with his friend earlier. He was fairly sure Remus would understand why he acted like such a jerk, but he made a mental note that he shouldn't forget to apologize later on.

Another three hours of waiting (and four disgusting coffees) later, Sauvage finally walked through the doors. She looked pretty tired, but also – if Sirius was interpreting her expression correctly – somewhat relieved. He got up from his seat. "And?"

Sauvage shot him a close look. "Well Sirius, I must say: your Mary is a vigorous girl."

"Will she be alright?"

"Yes, but she has been through a lot. She knew all along what hit her and has been continuously fighting the effects, even though she might have appeared immobile to you."

Sirius closed his eyes in relief. "And the baby?"

"I dare say all ends well. Thanks to Mary's strains, I might add."

"So… it hasn't died?"

Sauvage smiled. "Babies are remarkable resilient little things, Sirius. Although even I have to admit it's a small miracle it survived an attack like this."

"Can I see her?" he asked, shooting a longing look through the doors of the ward.

The Healer nodded. "She's still weak and needs to stay here for another few days so that we can keep a close eye on her. I gave her a powerful Sleeping Draft earlier to give her body some time to recover. But of course you may visit her. She's in room 17. Just keep in mind that she'll be a little groggy if she wakes up. And may I suggest alerting her family first?"

Sirius nodded. "Can I use one of the hospital owls?"

"Naturally," Sauvage nodded. "Now, I have to see another patient, but I'll check up on you guys later tonight."

She walked off in the other direction. After Sirius had written a quick note and included clear directions to the main entrance of St. Mungo's and watched the owl fly off, he hurried back to the Obstetrics ward. When he opened the door of room 17 and saw Mary resting in the hospital bed, all his worries returned at once. She didn't look good to him at all. She somehow looked skinnier than before, her face was still pale (the usual blush on her cheeks had disappeared) and her breathing had remained faint.

Sirius sat down on the chair next to the bed and stared at his fiancée. And he waited, waited for her to wake up: unsure how he would respond when she would open her eyes. On one hand, he was incredibly relieved and proud that Mary managed to keep herself _and_ their baby alive, but on the other, he was still furious about her lack of thought and irresponsible behaviour.

And then, after taking a sudden deeper breath, Mary finally woke up. She blearily eyed the room before turning her head and looking straight at him. "Hi," she whispered as she smiled drowsily and lifted her arm to reach for his hand. Sirius offered it reluctantly, inwardly still torn on whether he wanted to hug or shout at her.

Her eyes suddenly dropped to her stomach. She stroke her belly thoughtlessly for a moment with her free hand before looking back at him. "How's…?" she started hesitantly.

"It's fine," Sirius muttered quietly.

Mary let her head fall back to her pillow and heaved a huge sigh of relief. "Oh, that _is_ good news."

"Yeah, I know. Look Mary," Sirius said, unable to restrain his frustration with her any longer. "Why did you go to Esha Ness?"

Mary shot him a long look, frowning, and he could see she was trying to get her muzzy brain back into action. "I had to…" she said at last. "I couldn't let Brice go there alone. Neither could Lily, so we went along to protect her, or something like that."

Sirius licked his lips in frustration and swallowed hard, trying to remain calm. "And you did not for one second suspect that it might be an ambush?"

"I did, but they wouldn't listen to me and-"

Sirius pulled his hand away. He knew he was hurting her by doing this, but now he had started the argument, he was unable to stop. "What in Gordic's name were you thinking, Mary? You're _pregnant_ for Merlin's sake!"

"I…" she replied in a thin voice. "They're my best friends. What was I supposed to do?"

"Oh, I don't know: stay behind, alert one of us or Dumbledore, perhaps?"

Mary shot him an anxious look. "Please, try to see it from my perspective. What would _you_ have done?"

Sirius jumped up and banged his fist on the wall in frustration and anger. "Damn it, Mary!" he called, shooting her a furious look. _I'm_ not the one who's carrying our child!"

Mary, who had started to fiddle with her engagement ring, looked down at her trembling fingers. "I'm not proud of it either, but if I hadn't gonee back… Sirius, Lily would have died."

Sirius opened his mouth to retort, but forgot what he wanted to say as the wind was instantly taken out of his sails by what Mary had just said, and he closed it again. "Eh…" he said at last, more kindly. "What are you talking about?"

Mary caught the softer tone in his voice and dared to look up again. "Brice and I had escaped when we discovered that Lily had been caught by Voldemort. So I headed back down to rescue her. If I wouldn't have done that, I would not have been hit by the Conglaciatus Curse, but Lily would have been killed for sure. Harry would have lost his mother today…"

She had hit a soft spot there… Sirius was about to walk over and finally give her the comfort he could see she was needing badly when the door opened. He half expected it to be Mary's parents, but it was James who walked in, closely followed by a teary-eyed Lily. At first Sirius assumed she was just concerned about Mary and he was about to soothe her worries when his eyes fell on James. His best mate wasn't crying, but he looked numb, like he had just seen a ghost (and not a friendly Hogwarts one). Sirius walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "James?" he asked carefully.

Lily had already hurried past him and sat on the edge of Mary's bed to give her best friend a close hug. "I'm so glad you're okay!" She was still sobbing and Mary shot Sirius a puzzled look over Lily's shoulder, looking confused.

Sirius turned back to James. "Eh… Prongs?"

His friend shot Mary an anxious look. "I'm not sure how to say this and I certainly don't know if this is the right time and place, but…" He hesitated, shooting another concerned look at Mary.

"What? What is it?" Sirius cried, suddenly realizing that if James was this upset, something really horrible must have happened.

James gulped and said hoarsely: "It's just… We found Brice in the cave about an hour ago. I'm so sorry, but sh- she's gone."

End of Update

**A/N Yep, Brice is dead. Poor Remus… Anyway, some of you guys guessed it right and some others might be wondering why I keep contradicting canon by keeping the baby alive… I just like to toy around with canon knowledge, that's all. I hope you liked this chapter. Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by, because I simply adore feedback! –Mara**

**You'll find out more about Brice and how she was killed in the next update. Until then, here's a little something to keep you going:**

"_When will you step out of that organization?"_

"The Order? I'm not."

"But you must agree that it's a dangerous place for pregnant women."

Mary shot her father an incredulous look. "Now wait a minute: I chose to go Esha Ness myself. It's no one's fault that this happened. If there is anyone to blame, it's _me__."_

"John," Mrs. Woods said placidly. "Perhaps now is not the time-"

"You should protect your baby," Mr. Woods interrupted. "It's far too dangerous to be involved in such an eh… army."

"You just don't understand," Mary said, feeling upset because of her father's incomprehension. "My world is at war. Being in the Order is a reason to believe, a promise, that things could get better one day. I don't want to raise my child in the middle of a war."

"Mary, if you keep jeopardizing the baby's life, there won't be a child to raise at all."


	68. Oh, the Guilt

Chapter Sixty-Eight

**Chapter ****Sixty-Eight**

James's voice kept ringing in Mary's head and prevented the meaning of the words from actually sinking in. It seemed like her fuzzy mind was still under the influence of the Sleeping Draft and had temporarily forgotten how to translate a message sent by her ears to her brain. In any case, her first impression was that she was misunderstanding James. She tried to ignore a sobbing Lily, who was still sitting on her bed and clutching the hem of the sheets, and asked: "Where did you say Brice was?"

James shot her a puzzled look. "Gone, Mary," he repeated quietly. "She's gone."

But Mary's brain still wasn't working the way it should. Or perhaps she simply refused to accept the horrible truth. "Gone?" she replied in a thin voice. "Gone where?"

James stared at her. "Eh…" he said before exchanging look at Sirius, who clearly _had_ understood what happened to Brice. His furious and reproachful expression from their argument had disappeared and been replaced by shock and sadness; he also looked paler than Mary had ever seen him before. "She's still a little groggy, I think," he muttered to James as he carefully walked back to the seat next to Mary's bedside and sat down. "Love, listen to me," he said slowly and took her hand in his, and Mary noticed his grip felt clammy and in no way reassuring. "Brice did not make it out of the cave alive. She's d… She passed away."

Mary blinked and stared at him. It was like his words finally confirmed that which she had subconsciously been trying to deny so hard: that Brice, one of her oldest and closest friends, had died today. She was gone forever, perished, deceased… Mary had already forgotten the relief she felt when Sirius told her the baby had survived the Conglacius Cloud. The thought of never seeing or talking to Brice again was unbearable and yet, Mary didn't understand how Brice could have died. "But how…" she stammered. "It cannot be… She was safe, she was going to find help."

"I know," Lily said plaintively as she wiped a tear from her eye and got up from the bed. "But the passage she ran into had a dead end and…"

"A dead end?" Mary frowned. "That's not possible. I left her behind at the river of Inferi. She was going to follow the same way we used to get in."

"There was a division you guys passed on the way in, remember?" James said as he put his arms around Lily's waist and leaned his head on her shoulder.

Lily conjured a tissue out of thin air and blew her nose. "She took the wrong turn," she whispered. "And that passage was full of deadly booby traps…"

Sirius looked up from staring at the floor. "Are you saying that's what caused the passage to explode?"

Mary didn't see James nod because she had clapped her hands over her face. "Oh…"

Sirius bit his lip. "I know. Poor Brice…"

Mary looked at Lily. "Those explosions..." she whispered. "I thought she was creating a diversion for us. She told me she would."

Lily merely gave a quiet sob while listening to James who was whispering soothing words in her ear. Mary dropped her head to the pillow and closed her eyes, trying to make her mind stop spinning. Sirius was softly stroking her hand with his thumb. Mary was slightly surprised he had stopped being angry with her. She also reckoned he was expecting her to start crying, like Lily, but for some reason, the tears wouldn't come. Perhaps she was still feeling tired, confused and numb, or was the absence of tears being caused by something else? Because inwardly, Mary was slowly starting to feel something else besides sadness: an overpowering sense of guilt.

After all, it was she who left Brice behind at that river. If only her friend would have come along, or if she would have brought her to the very exit of the cave before heading back to save Lily. Even though part of her realized that Lily would have died if she hadn't gone back to rescue her in time, she could not help but feeling responsible. In fact: hadn't she, by saving Lily, chose her life over Brice's? The thought of being the indirect cause of her friends's death felt like betrayal, and it was making Mary feel even more sick than she already did.

Meanwhile, Sirius had conjured a goblet of water and was holding it in front of her mouth. "Have some water," he said. "It will make you feel better."

And indeed, Mary realized how dry her throat actually was. She wanted to take the goblet from Sirius, but that turned out to be impossible. She hardly had the energy to lift her arms, let alone holding a goblet. As soon as Sirius noticed, he sat down on the edge of the bed, cupped her face with one hand and held the goblet in the other. He then gently poured some water into her mouth, which she swallowed gratefully before he let her take another sip. And another one, until she had enough and leaned back against the pillow.

Lily witnessed this act in silence. "Oh Mare," she sighed at last. "You've been through so much tonight."

Mary gave a tiny shrug. Compared to what happened to Brice, she felt she had absolutely no right to complain. "I'm just exhausted," she whispered. "I can feel the baby sucking the energy right out of me. Which is fine, considering what almost happened to it, but Brice… I just-"

James shot her a concerned look. "Albus advised us to not tell you about Brice until you gained some strength, but we thought you had the right to know. But now I'm starting to think we shouldn't have bothered you with this after all. At least not tonight."

Sirius had been caressing Mary's forehead silently for the last few minutes, but he stopped doing that when he frowned at James. "We all know Mary would have figured it out herself soon enough if you didn't tell her immediately. She just needs to rest now, that's all. How's Remus doing?"

Sirius mentioning Remus was increasing Mary's sense of guilt even more. Remus was the nicest guy of all of them, always had been. He already had suffered so much in his short life. And now he had lost the one girl who loved him for who he was. It was so unfair. Brice shouldn't have died and Remus shouldn't be mourning over her death; not now, not ever. And yet he was.

James cleared his throat. "He was pretty dazed. I don't think I'll ever forget the look on his face when he found her beneath that pile of rocks. And when he carried her body out of the cave…" His voice was wavering slightly. "Anyway, he's with Dumbledore now."

"D'you think…" Sirius asked hesitantly, and Mary could tell by the tone of his voice that he was feeling guilty too. "Do you think he would want to see me later on?"

James arched an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't he?"

"Because of how I treated him earlier, on the beach. I said…" He sighed heavily. "I yelled at him because he didn't focus on Mary and wanted to look for Brice instead, and now Mary's doing okay but Brice…"

James stared at Sirius for a moment before he walked to the bed, pulled him up and put a hand on his shoulder. "Padfoot," he said sincerely. "If there's _anyone_ of us who knows what you've been through today, it's Remus. And vice versa… I think you're the only one who really understands what he's going through right now, but…" his gaze dropped to Mary. "I think it's better if you stay here tonight."

Sirius looked from James to Mary and back. "I don't know. Moony, I…"

"Sirius…" Mary said quietly, resisting the urge to beg him to stay with her. Even though she wanted nothing more than feeling his arms around her, she realized that Remus should have all the support he needed. It was the least she could do after being partly responsible for his girlfriend's death. "I think you should go."

Sirius shot her a long look before turning back to James. "Would you mind giving us a sec?"

His friend shook his head. "Of course not."

"We'll still have to pick up Harry at mum and dad's anyway. They must be wondering what's keeping us," Lily said as she walked forward to give Mary a hug, who would have liked to hug her friend back but simply lacked the strength to do so. "You make sure you get some sleep okay? I know you're worrying about Brice… And Remus, but you have other priorities now."

Mary smiled sadly. "I'll try."

Lily briefly squeezed her hand and got off the bed. "We'll be waiting outside to hear what you want to do," she told Sirius before she and James left the room and quietly closed the door behind them.

Sirius remained standing next to bed and bit his lip while staring out of the window, cogitating over what was the best thing to do. Mary watched him silently til she could not take his reverie any longer. "Look-" she said right when the door opened and Sauvage walked inside.

The Obstetrics Healer didn't look that pleased to see her awake. "Dear, dear," she tutted as she put a cool hand against her glowing forehead. "You have a slight fever, your eyes are dull and quite frankly dear, you look awful. You need to rest."

"It's the baby," Mary objected weakly. "It's been dragging all my energy out of me."

"Hu-hum," Sauvage nodded as she lifted the blankets and pulled up her shirt to feel her stomach. "Wouldn't you if you had almost frozen to death?"

Mary stared at the floor, flinching as another wave of guilt was washing over her like a tidal wave. She had jeopordized the life of her unborn child. She didn't think she could forgive herself for that, and she doubted Sirius ever would. At least his initial reaction had confirmed her worst fears. Mary hardly dared to look at him while Sauvage was examining her.

At last the Healer put the blankets back in place and scribbled somehting down on her clipboard. "Well Mary, I think you're just a bit overtired at the moment, but nothing that a good night won't cure." She pulled an elongated green flask from the pocket of her robes and put it on the night stand. "You'd better take another Sleeping Draft. This one will floor you for the rest of the night and when you wake up in the morning, I assure you'll feel better."

She looked at Sirius. "I came to tell you that Mary's family is on the way, but your sister… eh Jenna, is it? She just sent an owl to inform us they will be a little late. They were in a car-accident, you see…"

Mary's stomach plummeted. What was going on here? First she survived a freaking Conglaciatus Curse, then Brice died and now her parents and Jenna had been in an accident? Even Sirius seemed have trouble taking this information in. "Wh-What? Are they alright?"

"Oh yes," Sauvage smiled. "They are. It's just exteriror damage to their car, but they need to work things out with the insurance company before they can move on. I'm so sorry, Mary," she said as she looked down. "I demand that you'll take the potion now, so you won't see your family before tomorrow, at any rate."

Mary nodding slowly, feeling more numb about what was happening by the minute. Sauvage was just helping her to sit up straight so she could drink the draft more easily when Sirius said: "Hang on, we still need to talk about something. It's very important, I'm afraid. Please?"

Sauvage shot him a look, but eventually she nodded and walked to the door. "Three minutes, and not a second longer. I trust you will give her the potion instead?"

"Of course," Sirius nodded and when Sauvage closed the door behind her, he didn't waste any time and sat down on the edge of the bed. He placed his hands on her hands, which were resting on her rounding stomach and looked straight at her when saying softly: "I know there's a lot left to discuss, but with your current condition… And what happened to Brice, I had no right to reprimand you the way I did. I'm… I'm sorry."

Mary swallowed with difficulty. "But you were right. I shouldn't have gone to Esha Ness…"

"True, but now is not the time-,"

"It is!" she said shrilly. "I put the life of our baby in danger and now Brice is dead. I…"

"Shhh baby, listen to me," he said soothingly and cupped her face with his hands. "You must focus on what is important right now. It's only natural that you're thinking about Brice, and even though it's absolutely horrible what happened to her, you cannot help her anymore."

Mary nodded, feeling too disconcerted to reply. Sirius smiled sadly. "I'll stay with you tonight if you want me to."

"No," she replied at once. "I mean yes, I would like that… But Remus needs you more than I do."

"Are you sure?"

Mary smiled grimly. "Positive. I know that potion. We sometimes use it on our department as well. This stuff is so strong it could knock out an elephant. I'll be out within a minute."

"If that draft is that powerful, wouldn't it affect the baby's health?"

"No, it's just a powerful soporific."

The faintest flash of a smile crossed Sirius's face. "Alright. Then I'll go to Remus with James and Lily. And I will tell Sauvage to regale your parents and Jenna instead."

"Okay," Mary whispered.

"Okay," Sirius repeated. He leaned in for a kiss, but she hardly had the energy to kiss him back. When he noticed, he pulled back and smiled. "It's alright, Mare," he said while reaching for the potion flask on the night stand. "Just take your potion and get some sleep."

He was about to tip the content into her mouth, when Mary suddenly said: "When you see Remus…"

Sirius paused. "Yes?"

"Will you tell him that... that I'm so sorry for what happened to Brice?" she finished quiety, anxiously trying to hide the obvious guilty note in her voice.

Sirius frowned and shot her a close look. Mary avoided his gaze and stared down at her tummy instead. Did he notice she was feeling responsible for what happened to Brice? Would he draw his own conclusion from that? Would he agree that by leaving Brice behind in that passage, she had basically chosen Lily over her? Even if Sirius was, he certainly wasn't showing it. He merely nodded and said: "I'll make sure he gets the message."

He placed his fingers under her chin and put the top of the potion flask against her lips. "Open wide," he said, grinning slightly.

Mary obeyed and swallowed down the Sleeping Draft. The potion was starting to work before she had even finished the entire flask. She was already fighting to keep her eyes open. Sirius put the empty flask back on the night stand and tenderly kissed her forehead. "Sweet dreams," he whispered. "I love you."

Mary only managed to mumble back "Iuvoutoo" before the effects of the Sleeping Draft became too strong and took her to a black and dreamless place where worried and guilty thoughts about Remus and Brice could not haunt her.

When Mary woke up the next morning, she didn't realize where she was at first. This moment of blissful mouldiness lasted far too short, because it was all coming back to her soon enough. The instructions on the map, the cave on Esha Ness, Death Eaters, Voldemort, the curse, Sirius being angry with her, Brice... Oh God, Brice. The reality of her death seemed even more gruesome this morning. The thought of how her friend suffered before passing away in that deserted passage made Mary cringe with guilt. Remarkably enough, that flinch was the movement the others in the room noticed she was awake. "Mary!" Jenna called as she jumped up from her seat.

Mary smiled weakly at her younger sister before she looked sideways and spotted her mother sitting there. "Oh sweetheart, you're awake," Mrs. Woods said with a lump in her throat.

"Yeah," Mary said absent-mindely, her eyes scanning the room for the two faces she wanted to see the most.

"Your father and Sirius are just getting some breakfast," her mother said, reading her mind. "They'll be back soon."

"Can I go and tell them Mary woke up?" Jenna asked eagerly.

Mrs. Woods nodded and waited until Jenna had left the room before she asked: "How are you feeling?"

Mary looked at her mother and knew she could never lie to her. "Listless. And other than that: horrible," she whispered. "I mean the attack, and Brice… Oh mum, I can hardly comprehend she's gone."

Mrs. Woods gently stroke her hand. "I know, honey. It's awful, she was such a sweet girl. I understand you were the last person who saw her?"

"Yes."

"I'm sorry," her mother said genuinely. "But you must not forget to focus on your unborn child and-"

She stopped talking mid-sentence when the door opened and Mr. Woods hurried inside. He stalked over to the bed and immediately pulled Mary in a close hug. "Oh, my sweet little girl," he mumbled into her hair.

"Hi dad," she replied in a muffled voice. She took a deep breath when her father finally loosened his firm embrace. "Where's Sirius?"

"I left him at the counter to pay for the groceries," he said as he got up and leaned back against the window-still. "I thought we lost you last night. Sirius told us it was a close call."

"It was. Ehm… How's the car?"

"At the garage, but never mind that. What are you going to do?"

Mary looked confused. "What do you mean?"

"When will you step out of that organization?"

"The Order? I am not."

"But you must agree it's a dangerous place for pregnant women."

Mary shot him an incredulous look. "Now hang on a minute: I chose to go Esha Ness myself. It's no one's fault that this happened. If anyone is to blame here, it's _me_."

"John.." Mrs. Woods said placidly. "Perhaps now is not the time-"

"You should protect your baby," Mr. Woods interrupted his wife. "It's far too dangerous to be involved in such an eh… army."

"You just don't understand," Mary said, starting to feel annoyed because of her father's incomprehension. "My world is at war. Being in the Order is a reason to believe, a promise, that things could get better. I don't want to raise my child in the middle of a war."

"Mary, if you keep jeopordizing the baby's life, there won't be a child to raise at all."

Mary stared at her father. At that moment, the door opened and Sirius and Jenna walked in together, carrying large bags of groceries. "Morning," he said, trying to sound cheerful but as he handed the bags to Mrs. Woods and walked over to the bed, Mary spotted dark shadows under his eyes. He looked exhausted when he kissed her good morning. After that, he looked up at Mr. Woods. "I couldn't help but overhearing, John. I can assure you that Mary, or any pregnant Order-member for that matter, won't take part in any mission again. We unanimously agreed to that at last night's meeting."

Mrs. Woods heaved a relieved sigh and Mr. Woods nodded. "I'm glad to hear that."

Sirius looked at Mary. "So how's our sleeping beauty doing this morning?"

She yawned. "Less groggy, still listless as ever."

"It will get better day by day. But I have some good news. Sauvage told me I can take you home. She gave me a bag of potions, a strict list of instructions _and_ announced she will be visiting you every night for an examination, but I promised to keep a close eye on you, so she agreed to let you recover at home."

Mary shot him a grateful look. "Thanks."

Sirius nodded. "We should gather your things so we can leave in about a hour."

Mary's family and Sirius had breakfast together and even though she wasn't hungry, Mary forced herself to eat a piece of toast and some forest fruit, just to have something inside to keep the baby going. After breakfast, Mary's parents made her promise she would rest enough and obey Sirius's orders at all times. Her dad told her he loved her, even though he still thought she had been very irresponsible. There was no need to be reminded of that: Mary was feeling guilty enough as it was. Her mother promised she visit them soon and make her famous chicken soup. And Jenna said she was going to stay over at their place that weekend, since Dumbledore told her she could take the week off school to spend with Mary and her family.

When Sirius had put all her stuff in his bag, he – carrying Mary because she still couldn't walk – guided the Woods to the exit of St. Mungo's. After they watched them walk off to the nearest train station, Sirius headed over to the hospital courtyard and disapparated to their place. As soon as they got home, he carried her all the way up the stairs to their bedroom, pulled off her robes and put her in the bed. All this time, Mary did not say a word. She couldn't stop thinking about Brice and Remus, but didn't dare to ask how he was. What if Remus was furious and refused to see her? Sirius had made sure she was in a comfortable position before asking: "Can I get you anything?"

"Ehm… Some tea would be nice, I guess."

"With a biscuit?"

Mary wasn't hungry, but she nodded. "Great," Sirius grinned. "One tea and a biscuit coming right up."

He gave her a kiss and walked to the door, when Mary decided she had to know after all. "How is Remus?"

Sirius paused with the door handle in his hands. He turned slowly and frowned. "Well, he was just… Remus, I think. I mean, he was more sad than I've ever seen him before. Dazed, too. But besides being frustrated, he was also, I dunno… Quite cloyed. He was the exact opposite of how I reacted."

Mary sighed. "I feel horrible about what happened."

Sirius nodded, not taking her away her guilt one bit. "Yes, I agree. it's just awful. Anyway, I should go and make your tea."

He headed down the stairs and left Mary behind, who was contemplating on what Remus must be thinking right now. Sirius may have said he was cloyed, but wasn't Remus always that calm? He seemed to be frustrated at the same time. Mary sighed, suddenly realizing she hadn't actually cried yet. She sighed as she remembered she owed it to her baby to be strong and looked around the room, trying to focus on something else for a moment. She spotted a wrapped gift under a large pile of books on her night stand. When she pulled the gift from under the pile, she realized it was Fabian's gift. The present Mrs. Weasley gave her at his and Gideon's funeral.

Mary had been putting off unwrapping that gift for ages, because she knew it would be the last thing she'd ever get from Fabian. But now… She twirled the gift in her hands before she made up her mind and ripped off the paper. It turned out to be a book, some kind of spell guide. Mary studied the cover: _How to survive in tough situations, the book every adventurous wizard should own! By R.J. Marshall_. When Mary opened the book, a card that had been stuck in the middle of the book fell out. Her heart missed a beat when she recognized Fabian's messy handwriting. The card read:

_Dear Mary,_

Lately I've been forced to listen to Sirius and James who believe that  
every Order-member should follow a course at the Program to learn  
some basic life-saving spells. I say: Auror Program, Schmauror  
Program! Learn the most important spells in his book by heart and  
you'll always manage to get out of dangerous situations alive. Even  
better, you probably outsmart that big-headed but wonderful lucky 

_bastard called Sirius Black who'll be marrying you in a few months._

-Fabian

Mary merely stared at the note for a few minutes. She was still missing Fabian's outwitted comments and gentle character every day and this letter brought back so many memories, including the night he got killed. She sighed and leafed through the book. She had to admit: there were some pretty handy spells in there. There was a charm that conjured an almost invisible bridge over every ravine, and a spell to build an entire camp (including tent and campfire) with one flick of your wand. But then her eyes fell on another charm:

_The Four-Point Spell: a simple but incredibly useful spell, which will point the caster, should he or she be lost, in the right direction._

Mary stared at the page, feeling dizzy. She dropped the book on the pillow next to her and rubbed her eyes frantically, because she had only just realized something. Brice had taken the wrong passage at that diversion in the cave. If she had known about the Four-Point Spell, she would not have been lost, and thus: would still be alive. Fabian's birthday present had been on Mary's night stand for months and she hadn't opened it. Her eyes were stinging, but she bit her lip hard and furiously blinked her tears away. She didn't have the right to cry. Brice died because Mary never told her about the Four-Point Spell. Remus had lost Brice forever. And that was her fault.

End of Update

**A/N: So there you have it: Mary is blaming herself for what has happened to Brice. Is she thinking straight or not? And does Sirius also think she is responsible for this? Hopefully the next chapter will clear up some things. Let me know what you thought of this chapter (I love reviews!!) and until then, here's a little tease of what is coming soon:**

_He handed her the flask and Mary used her wand to transport t__he burdened memory to the bottle, where the bright, whitish silver and cloud-like thought continued to move around ceaselessly. After he had put the flask in his pocket, Dumbledore stood up. "Thank you," he said kindly. "I know it must be burdensome to share a memory like this with the entire Order." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Is there anything else that is bothering you?"_

He shot her a close look and Mary quickly shook her head, feeling like she was getting x-rayed by those light blue, sparkling and above all piercing eyes. She feverishly tried to perform Occlumency – after all, the Legillimency with Lily in the cave had worked in the end – but with Dumbledore, she knew she wouldn't stand a chance.

"Mary," he said, "I only perform Legillimency when I have to, and I have no intention in doing so today. Still, one does not need to possess that talent to deduce you're troubled. I understand I'm not the most ideal person for you to talk to, but I do think it would be a good idea to stop shutting Sirius out like this."

**Cheers! **

**-Mara**


	69. Dumbledore's Advice

buChapter Sixty-Nine/u/b

**Chapter Sixty-Nine**

Over the next few days, Mary spent most of her time on regaining her strength and in the meantime, trying hard to hide that she was feeling guilty about what happened. She wasn't entirely sure if the Order was holding her responsible for what happened at Esha Ness. No one ever really mentioned Brice's death in her presence, but Mary suspected that she only got this gentle treatment because they didn't want to upset her more than strictly necessary.

To Mary, this tactic didn't feel too bad for the moment. It basically meant no one would ask questions about dodge subjects such as self-pity and guilt: the nagging pains (both mental and physical) were giving her an odd feeling of satisfaction. It was like the absence of crying fits and the sorrowful emptiness prevented her from reasoning what _really_ happened down there, and thus: punished her enough to (somewhat) ease her conscience.

Sirius didn't have a clue about what was going on inside her head. Once again Mary was grateful that he could not perform Legillimency, and although he was shooting her several concerned looks throughout the day, he not once questioned her about what was going on. Instead he just kept a close eye on her when he was at home, making sure she was resting enough and drinking her potions at the prescribed moments.

Mary assumed Sirius really wanted to discuss what happened, how it was making her feel and why she hadn't cried about it yet. But when he tried to bring up the subject one evening, Mary cut him off and said she was tired and went to bed, and he hadn't tried talking about it since. Instead, he attended many Order meetings, where he and the others tried to analyze what exactly happened and also tried to decide on what should happen in the future to prevent anything like this from happening again.

Besides her St. Mungo's-colleagues Pierce, Ching-Lu and Nate, many Order-members had also paid Mary a visit. James and Peter dropped by on Monday with a huge bundle of flowers, Frank and Alice gave her a large basket full of herbs with healing powers, Zabini, Edgar and Moody stayed over for supper on Tuesday and Lily, who visited Mary at least once a day because they had to prepare a speech for Brice's funeral, brought Harry over on Wednesday night in an attempt to cheer her up. Which actually worked, even if it was only just for a few hours: the adorable noises Harry was making occasionally even made Mary smile.

Remus stopped by later that week as well, but he knocked on their door at 11PM because he had to discuss something with Sirius. Mary was already asleep at that time, and since Sirius didn't want to disturb her, she missed out on the one opportunity to talk to Remus. To her great dismay. "Why didn't you wake me up?" she had asked Sirius the following morning.

"Because Sauvage said it's better to not wake you up when you've had one those Sleeping drafts," Sirius replied while adding milk to his cereal. "I didn't want to wake you and Remus agreed. Besides, what would you have said anyway?"

Mary looked at him as she was crumbling her toast into little pieces, unsure if he had started to realize what was bugging her so much. "I don't know," she mumbled at last. "I guess I'd just like to know how he feels."

Sirius swallowed a mouthful of cereal. "Well, he's still devastated. But Mare, he's also more introverted since the accident, avoids talking about it as much as possible. He refuses to discuss it with me, Peter, even James. What makes you think he would talk about it with you?"

Mary outwardly didn't show how much his comment was affecting her, that he had once again clarified that Remus did not want to see her, and shrugged instead. "I…"

"Oh, let me guess," Sirius suddenly said with a grin on his face, showing Mary – who felt somewhat relieved – he still didn't know she was blaming herself for Brice's death. "Because you're a girl, and the female race is more capable of sympathizing with their friends?"

"Erm.." Mary finally took a bite of her crumbled toast to win some time before answering that question, but she didn't have to. Sirius had already put his plate in the sink and walked over to her chair to hug her from behind. "It's very sweet of you to worry so much about Remus," he muttered in her untidy hair.

"Well, how can I not?" she said, concentrating on keeping her voice steady while brushing a few bread crumbs from the table.

"I know. But there's nothing you can do."

"Not anymore," Mary muttered grimly, blurting out the words before she could stop herself.

She could sense Sirius was frowning at her. "What did you say?" he asked, looking confused.

"Nothing."

After shooting her another look, he gave it up for now. "Listen love, right now the most important thing is to focus-"

"-On the baby, I know that."

"And yourself. That's what Remus wants you to do as well."

He turned Mary slightly on her seat to give her a kiss. She kissed him back absent-mindedly, her mind drifting somewhere between Remus and Brice. Sirius pulled back after another moment. "I'm gonna be home late. I have to attend to some Order business after work and-"

"What's it about?"

"Never you mind worrying about that. It's nothing dangerous, I promise. Oh, and Jenna will be spending the afternoon here to keep you company."

Mary nodded. "I think she also said something about staying over for dinner."

"Indeed. If you don't mind, I won't feel like cooking an extensive meal after such a long day, so how about if I get us some Chinese take-out?"

The faintest flash of a grin crossed her face. "Don't let Sauvage hear you."

"Well, I don't intend on telling her, do I?" he grinned back. And with another goodbye kiss, he got back up and disapparated to the Auror Office.

Mary didn't have to spend much time on her own. Only an hour later, which she had used to clean up the mess in the kitchen and drink one of the Energy drafts Sauvage had recommended, she was about to sit down on the couch when she heard the door bell. She took her time to walk to the door, making sure she grabbed her wand from the table on the way. In these times, you never knew who would be standing there, and it was always better to be prepared. Mary peeked through the small hole in the door and when she noticed the person outside was in fact her little sister, she opened the door. "Hi."

"Hey sis," Jenna replied and made an attempt to walk inside. She frowned when Mary held her back. "What are you doing?"

"You'll have to answer a personal question about yourself first."

_"What?"_

"It's a new protocol from the Ministry and considering what happened a few days ago, I'm not taking any risks. Now, what is dad's single favourite movie quote of all time?"

Her little sister huffed. "This is just ridiculous. If you don't trust me-"

"-Jenna!"

She rolled her eyes impatiently and snapped: "Fine. It's "I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse" from the Godfather."

Mary smiled and opened the door wide. "Come on in."

She guided Jenna to the living room and told her to sit down while she would make them some lime-flavoured tea (Jenna's favourite). When she returned ten minutes later and put the tray down on the salon table, she was panting slightly. Jenna shot her a concerned look. "Shouldn't I be doing this stuff for you?"

Mary carefully sat down on the couch next to her and stretched her legs. She shook her head after taking a few deep breaths. "No… I'm doing alright in the morning, it's the evenings that make me feel like I've run a whole marathon instead of hanging out on the couch all day."

Jenna added a cube of sugar to her tea. "That sucks," she said sympathetically. "And how you're keeping up with everything? You know… The baby's health, Brice's funeral?"

Mary stared out of the window for a moment, feeling guilty again about every second she wasn't thinking about her friend's memory. "It's… fine," she muttered at last before looking up with a fake smile. "But let's not focus on me. I'm so glad you're here to distract me for a little while. What's been up with you?"

"Well…" her sister said slowly after taking a sip of tea. "School's fine. I mean, I think Transfiguration is boring as hell and Defense is still my weakest point, although I must say you tutoring me last Christmas really helped. But Herbology and most of all Potions is an absolute blast."

Mary snorted. "You're like the exact opposite of me."

Jenna grinned. "I know, that's what McGonagall told me the other day. She said if we didn't look so much alike, no one would ever guess we're sisters."

"I guess so. And how're things with Victoria?"

"Good," she nodded. "We're still best friends, but…" she hesitated. "Well, ever since she's been going out with Bob, it's just… They like cuddling in public…"

"And you feel a little left out because of that?"

"In a way, yes. It's quite annoying watching them actually, especially since…"

She stopped talking mid-sentence. Mary finished her tea and gave her sister a gentle push. "What?" she said. "Oh come on, it's me. You know you can tell me anything."

"Ehm okay, well… it's eh.. .it's this guy…"

Mary arched an amused eyebrow and Jenna's cheeks turned red. She didn't say anything else and started to fidget with the hem of her sleeve, a habit that seemed oddly familiar to Mary, who couldn't help but smile. "And…?" she said encouragingly after another moment.

"He's a fellow Gryffindor, one year older than me."

"What's his name?"

"William, or Will in short."

"Does he like you as well?"

"Yes, I think so. He's asked me out to Hogsmeade more than once."

"Then what's the problem? Go to Hogsmeade with the guy, have a little fun."

Jenna bit on one of her nails. "But he's handsome, popular, and er… He has dated a lot of girls already."

"Now hang on a minute. This all sounds a little too familiar to me."

Jenna nodded and giggled. "He's basically Sirius. The Sirius you described and fumed over when you guys were in fifth year."

Mary laughed, shaking her head. "Oh Merlin, history is repeating itself. I sense a pattern…"

Jenna joined in laughing, obviously relieved that she succeeded in making her genuinely depressed sister laugh. "I know," she said, grinning. "It's like it's written on our forehead or something: Woods girl, likes to be swept off her feet by handsome but exceedingly arrogant guys."

"And have you decided if you will be accepting his invitation?"

She sighed. "No. What would you do?"

Mary raised her eyebrows. "Me? I don't think our situations are that much alike, Jenna. You do like this guy, right?" When her sister nodded, she continued: "When I was in fifth year, I hated everything about Sirius. From the casual but sexy way he shook his hair back from his eyes to how he was strutting around the school like he bloody owned the place. Anyway, I've never seen this guy William…"

"But he _is_ very nice, even if it is in a slightly conceited way."

"Then maybe you should give him a chance. That's what I did with Sirius and look where we ended up."

"I see your point. But we're still so young. You and Sirius, Lily and James, even Remus and Brice only got together in the final year."

Mary ignored Jenna's mention of Brice and Remus and tried to smile convincingly. "Frank and Alice started dating at the end of their fourth year and they're still together. It can happen, Jenna."

She nodded. "I guess you're right, but what if-" She stopped talking when she heard a knock on the front door. "Were you expecting someone else today?"

Mary shook her head slowly. "Not that I can remember." She tried to get up but Jenna pushed her back down. "You just sit here and wait. I'll go."

Jenna walked out of the living room. "Keep your wand at the ready and don't forget to ask a personal question!" she shouted after her.

According to Mary, almost _anyone_ could have decided to pay her a visit, but she certainly did not expect to see the person who was following Jenna into the living room. It was Albus Dumbledore. Mary hadn't seen with him since the Order meeting on the night prior to the events at Esha Ness. She jumped up from the couch. "Albus!"

"Please, Mary," Dumbledore said. "Spare your energy from getting up just for me. I apologize for dropping in so unexpectedly, but I was wondering if I could steal a moment of your time."

For a moment, Mary just stared at the Headmaster. Was he here to discuss how Brice died? That was a likely scenario, but she knew Sirius had asked - or perhaps even ordered - the others to only bother her with details that were strictly necessary and nothing else. Which was a reasonable thought in theory, but Sirius didn't know she was feeling guilty and thus, was thinking about the attack non-stop anyway and what she could, should have done differently.

Meanwhile, Dumbledore had walked to the sitting area. "Do you mind if I…?" he asked, pointing at one of the arm chairs opposite her.

"Of course not, please sit down." Mary looked at Jenna, who was still standing in the door opening, indecisive about whether or not she was supposed to leave. "Jenna," Mary said, "If you go upstairs to our bedroom, you will see a red large file on the third shelf of our bookcase. There are loads of clever spells and instructions in there that could come in handy during Defense class."

"Really?" Jenna asked eagerly and Mary gave her a little smile. Her sister had bought it, or perhaps she just understood that Dumbledore wanted to speak to her in private.

When Jenna had ran up the stairs and audibly closed the bedroom door, Mary looked at Dumbledore. "Can I offer you a drink?"

Dumbledore smiled. "If you have any pumpkin juice…"

Mary nodded and tried to heave herself up, but Dumbledore raised a hand. "Not to worry," he said merrily and waved his wand; two goblets of ice cold pumpkin juice appeared and he handed one of them to her. "And these are freshly made," he said with a tiny wink.

Mary sipped the drink and had to admit she hadn't drunk pumpkin juice like this since leaving Hogwarts. "It's delicious," she said. She looked up and noticed that Dumbledore was eyeing her with a concerned look on his face, and she instantly knew this was not a casual visit. She cleared her throat. "Not that I'm not pleased that you came to visit me, but… I assume my health issues aren't the main reason you're here?"

Dumbledore smiled. "Yes, and no. After what happened at Esha Ness, I have to say it's a reassuring thought to determine your physical recovery is progressing prosperously. How are you doing emotionally?"

"Emotionally?"

"Yes, Brice's passing must have come as a real shock to you," Dumbledore clarified.

"Er yes, of course it is," she replied, thinking hard of a way to change the subject. "Is that why you're here?" she asked bluntly. "To act as my personal therapist?"

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows in surprise, and Mary blushed fiercely. "I'm sorry," she muttered apologetically. "I didn't mean…"

"But you are quite right, Mary," he interrupted calmly as he put his goblet down on the table. "I _am_ an extraordinary listener if I say so myself, but… Indeed, that is not the reason, at least not the main, why I am here. I assume Sirius told you about the Order's investigation on the events leading up to Brice's death?"

"Yes, but very little, though."

"Sirius has reason to believe you shouldn't trouble yourself with what is going on," Dumbledore said. "And I agree. However, I do think you have the right to hear at least a few basic facts, especially since what I'm about to ask you."

Mary paled slightly when she wondered what Dumbledore was going to ask her: would he demand that she admitted playing a big, if not crucial role in getting Brice killed? He didn't seem to notice anything odd about her (or at least he didn't show anything) and said: "We investigated the map we found next to Brice's body more thoroughly and have established it was a forgery. Also, we are trying to reconstruct what exactly happened. And this is where you come in."

She shot him a confused look. "I'm not sure if I'm following you."

"Memories," Dumbledore replied. He pulled a small triangular and empty flask from the pocket of his robes and placed it on the table.

She stared at the flask. "You want to collect my memory of the attack?"

"Exactly."

"But Lily…"

"-Has already donated her memory, which proved to be very useful. But we're missing the final pieces of the puzzle. You were the last one who saw Brice before… Before the explosion. Of course, the loan will only be temporary; you will get the memory back once we've finished studying it."

Mary stared down at her stomach for a moment, thinking about the possible consequences. Not only did she risk to get blamed for what happened, the matter of Severus Snape also crossed her mind. She hadn't told anyone, not even Sirius, about him joining Voldemort's side; a Death Eater who didn't kill her when he had the chance and – why, she still hadn't figured out - let her get away. That secret would be out in the open sooner than she had wanted, but it wasn't like she was having a choice. She shrugged and said quietly: "I wouldn't mind getting rid of this memory forever."

Dumbledore smiled sadly. "Even though this might seem impossible to you now, one day you will be thankful for having that final memory and cherish it."

He handed her the flask and Mary used her wand to transport the burdened memory from her mind to the bottle, where the bright, whitish silver and cloud-like thought continued to move around ceaselessly. After he had put the flask back inside his robes, Dumbledore got up form his chair. "Thank you," he said kindly. "I know it must be burdensome to share a memory like this with the Order." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Is there anything else that is bothering you?"

He shot her another close look and Mary quickly shook her head, feeling like she was being x-rayed by those light blue, sparkling and above all piercing eyes. She feverishly tried to perform Occlumency – after all, the telepathical Legillimency with Lily in the cave had worked out in the end – but with Dumbledore, she knew she would never stand a chance.

"Mary," he said, "I only perform Legilliemency when I have to, and I have no intention in doing so today. Still, one doesn't need to possess that power to deduce you're troubled. I understand I'm not the most ideal person to talk to, but I do think it might be a good idea to stop shutting Sirius out."

He gave her a final nod and with a "Give my best to Jenna", he disapparated. Mary stared at the spot Dumbledore had been standing only seconds ago. His last comment had made clear that he knew perfectly well what she was thinking. Mary realized she had to be grateful for Dumbledore not mentioning anything about their talk to Sirius, but she also knew she couldn't tell her boyfriend that she was blaming herself. What if he agreed with her?

This thought was on her mind the entire afternoon, even while she was helping Jenna to finish her Charms-homework. Sirius got home at 7.30 PM and after the three of them had finished eating the Chinese take-out, he brought Jenna back to their parents. When he got back, Sauvage had already arrived to examine Mary. "Hello," Sirius said when he walked into the bedroom.

"Good evening, Sirius," Sauvage said, looking up from pulling Mary's shirt back down. "Mary, I'm pleased to see the baby is doing a little better every day, but I'm somewhat concerned that you keep feeling listless. Have you been taking your potions?"

"Yes," she nodded. "And I definitely sleep more than eight hours a day. I don't understand, I should be feeling stronger by now."

"Hmm." Sauvage frowned while consulting her notes. "I think you need to be honest with yourself. Your friend's funeral takes place this Saturday, correct?"

"Yes."

"Perhaps you should consider skipping it."

"What?" Mary squeaked and even Sirius looked shocked. "But…" she stammered. "The funeral is still two whole nights away."

"Listen to me," the Healer said, shooting her a stern look. "Be reasonable here: if you're not strong enough, you'll put your own life and that of your baby on stake."

"Love," Sirius said slowly. "She has a point there."

"And I'm sure your friend wouldn't mind," Sauvage added.

Mary shot her an annoyed look. "Brice cannot really mind, now can she? Considering she's _dead_."

"Mary…" Sirius said reproachfully.

But Sauvage wasn't angry with her. Instead, she smiled sadly. "Obviously attending her funeral is important to you. Alright then." She waved her wand and several potion flasks with a bright fuschia-coloured content appeared on the bedside table. "You'll have to take this potion, a very strong energy drink, three times a day after your meals. I'll come back Friday night and if you still haven't recovered enough by then, you will agree to stay home. Do we have a deal?"

She held out her hand and Mary shook it. "Done. Would you like to seal it with an Unbreakable Vow?"

Sauvage chuckled. "That would be a little over-dramatic, wouldn't it? I'll see you guys on Friday. Take care."

She disapparated with a loud crack. Sirius walked to the bathroom to take a shower and Mary, who was still sitting on the edge of the bed, focused on untying her shoe-laces, but it was hard (if not impossible) to muster the strength. After trying for another while, Mary gave a frustrated cry and dropped back on the bed.

"What's up with you?" Sirius had just returned from the bathroom, wearing nothing more than a towel around his muscular and bare waist.

Mary rubbed her eyes and grumbled something unintelligible about the "absurdity of shoe-laces."

Sirius shot her an amused look and put on a pair of boxers before dropping to his knees in front of her and pulled off her shoes, socks and robes. He also helped her put on a silk slip dress. "Thanks," she muttered when he had finished and dropped down next to her.

"No problem," he said. He continued looking at her and Mary felt she had no choice but to look back. "How was your day?" he asked when their eyes finally met.

Mary briefly explained about Dumbledore's visit and the memory, although she left out the last part of the conversation. "And Jenna likes this guy…"

Sirius frowned. "Isn't she a little too young for dating?"

"She's fifteen!"

"My point exactly."

"Excuse me? When did you start going out with girls? At thirteen?"

He smirked. "Twelve, actually."

Mary rolled her eyes. "Typical. Anyway, the guy she likes is well… He resembles you, in fifth year."

"Then she shouldn't go out with him," Sirius said dismissively. "He certainly won't be ready for committing to anyone, if that's what she's looking for."

"Hmm," she pondered. "I might have to write her another letter, then."

"What did you tell her?"

"To follow her heart."

This time it was Sirius's turn to roll his eyes. "Girls," he muttered before raising his hand to stroke her hair. "What about Saturday?"

"You heard what Sauvage-"

"I know her opinion. I wanna know what you think."

Mary blinked repeatedly to push back a few upcoming tears. "Please don't force me to stay away from Brice's funeral."

He sighed. "I would never force you into anything, but I'm hoping you will be responsible enough to objectively decide about this yourself. After all, even though she's no longer around to confirm it, I'm pretty sure Brice _really_ wouldn't mind."

And in her heart, Mary knew he was right. Brice had always been the most reasonable girl of their group, which was probably why she and Remus had matched so well. It was hard to admit, but if there was anyone who would forgive a friend from missing her funeral after what happened, it would have been Brice McDonald. Mary sighed and reached for Sirius's hand to intertwine her fingers with his. "I know," she whispered. "Which is exactly why I feel I _should_ go."

End of Update

**A/N**** Awww… Mary is still not feeling any better about herself and the situation. But will she make it to Brice's funeral? You'll find out in the next chapter. Till that time comes, please don't forget to leave a review and here's a little teaser from the upcoming update:**

"_Yeah well," Sirius shrugged. "He might not realize it yet, but uncle Sirius will be the coolest guy he'll ever know."_

Lily arched an eyebrow, but chose not to respond to that comment. "Er… alright. Could you give me and Harry a ride home?"

"Of course." He jumped up from the couch. "Will you be okay if I bring them home?" he asked looking at Mary, who rolled her eyes. "I think I'm able to undress myself tonight, yes."

"Good." he nodded as he put on his motor jacket and acciod the keys of his motorbike.

"I'll probably already be in bed when you get back, though."

Sirius looked up with sudden interest. His eyes were twinkling and he grinned mischievously. "Oh, really now?"

Mary flushed bright red, making Lily laugh aloud. When Sirius joined her, Mary shot the two of them a reproachful look. "Guys, come on. This isn't respectful to… to Brice."


	70. Much Ado About Everything

Chapter Seventy

**Chapter ****Seventy**

"Well Mary, I must admit I did not expect this, but I actually think you're strong enough to attend your friend's funeral."

Sauvage's conclusion was the first good news Mary had heard in days. After she promised her obstretician to stay away from the funeral if she wasn't strong enough, she had focused entirely on getting healthy. She obediently took Sauvage's special potion (which smelled and tasted just like detergent) and ate loads of broccoli and cauliflower, besides devouring every nutrition bar she could get her hands on; anything that would result in earning Sauvage's blessing.

And it had worked in the end. Even though Mary would now shudder at the mere sight of broccoli or cauliflower, she was definitely feeling more energetic _and_ had been allowed to go to the funeral. This was good news for everyone. Lily, who was visiting them tonight to talk about the final version of their speech and had brought Harry along, was sitting across Mary and Sauvage. She had anxiously witnessed how Sauvage examined Mary while stroking a loudly purring Coco and was now heaving a relieved sigh. "Oh, thank goodness," she said. "Now I won't have to go up there all alone."

She was referring to tomorrow's speech and Mary couldn't suppress a little smile. "Don't be ridiculous, you would do a fine job on your own, you know that."

"Yeah," Sirius chimed in. He was stretched out on his back on the couch, with Harry on top of his chest. "You never even flinched during speeches when you were a Prefect. I remember James used to really admire that about you. Then again," he added with a grin. "Prongs already admired _everything_ about you."

"Right," Lily replied darkly. "Little did you guys know I was under the influence of a cleverly made calming potion from Severus every single time."

The temperature in the room seemed to drop with twenty degrees. Mentioning Severus Snape's name resulted in Sirius ignoring her reply completely; he just shrugged moodily and turned his attention back to Harry. The fact that Mary's memory of Esha Ness had revealed that Snape joined the Death Eaters did surprise some Order-members, including Dumbledore, Zabini and Lily. The others (James, Sirius and Moody among them) merely concluded that their biased opinion of him had been right all along. Mary feared that Sirius was annoyed with her for "forgetting" to mention any of this to him and thus, he had to find out about it like everybody else.

Meanwhile, Sauvage had gathered her things. She too noticed that the sphere in the room had become somewhat icy, but decided to not pay attention to that. She smiled down at Mary. "Just be sure to keep a close eye on things tomorrow. Whenever you feel faint or dizzy, make sure you sit down at once."

"It's a funeral, Juliette. I doubt I will have to stand up longer than ten minutes at a time."

"Well, just in case; remember to listen to your body. And I still discourage you to Apparate to the church on your own."

Sirius, who was lifting a cooing Harry up and down in the air, smiled: "That's not a problem. We can go by bike."

Sauvage's brow furrowed slightly. "By bike?" she asked suspiciously.

"Yeah," he replied. "I have a flying motorbike."

"Oh. Well, that's fine, I suppose. As long as you remember to dress warmly. According to tomorrow's report, the weather is not going to be pretty."

"Don't worry, I will," Mary said quickly.

"In that case, I wish you all good luck all tomorrow," Sauvage said sincerely. She swung her bag over her shoulder and walked over to Sirius and Harry. She caressed the baby's tiny head for a moment. "He's looking very happy and healthy, Lily. Look at those rosy cheeks."

"I believe that's my merit," Sirius grinned. "I mean, I've been slewing him up and down for the last few minutes."

Lily laughed. "He only likes it when you and James do that, actually."

"Yes," Sauvage nodded. "That's because men tend to swing babies up in the air higher than women, who fear they might drop them. Well ladies and gent, I'm off to St. Mungo's. Good night."

"Bye," Mary, Lily and Sirius said more or less at the same time.

As soon as Sauvage had disapparated, Lily got up from her chair. "I think it's better if I head home as well. We've got a long and important day ahead of us…"

Mary nodded while magically refilling her goblet with water and Lily walked over to Sirius on the couch, who seemed to be a little reluctant to hand the baby back. Harry on the other hand made a cheerful sound when his eyes met his mother's and he stretched out his little arms to her. Lily smiled at Sirius while taking Harry over from him. "You'll see him again tomorrow, Sirius."

He smiled back weakly and handed her Harry's little wool bonnet. "Is it that obvious how much I love this little boy?"

Mary - despite the gloomy atmosphere - tried to suppress a giggle but failed and Lily smiled serenely as she gently put the bonnet on her son's head. Sirius looked from a giggling Mary to a smiling Lily. "What?"

"I think any fool could see you can't wait to hold him in your arms again," she said simply and when Sirius opened his mouth to give a clever response, she added: "And I'm pretty confident Harry is looking forward to it just as much."

"Yeah well," Sirius smirked. "He might not realize it yet, but uncle Sirius will be the coolest guy he'll ever know."

Lily arched an eyebrow, but chose not to respond. "Er... alright. Could you give me and Harry a ride home?"

"Of course." Sirius jumped up from the couch at once. "Will you be okay if I bring them home?" he asked Mary, who rolled her eyes. "I think I'm able to undress myself tonight, yes."

"Good." Sirius nodded as he put on his motorjacket and acciod the keys of his motorbike.

"I might already be in bed by the time you get back, though."

Sirius looked up with sudden interest. His eyes were twinkling and he grinned mischievously. "Oh, really now?"

Mary flushed bright red, making Lily laugh aloud. When Sirius joined her, Mary shot them both a reproachful look. "Guys, come on. This isn't respectful to… to Brice."

Lily had put on her robes and was walking over to Mary with Harry in her arms. She bent over to give her a hug before whispering: "Tomorrow we'll think about Brice all the time, but to mourn over her every hour of every day just isn't healthy. Brice wouldn't want you to do that. Besides, she never liked to be in the centre of the attention much anyway."

Mary was unable to explain how much Lily's words meant to her, so instead she focused on giving Harry a kiss on his nose. He playfully touched her lips with his fingers for a moment and Mary couldn't not smile. "Bye, bye, little man," she sang softly and looked at Lily. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Her friend nodded and walked to the front door. "Don't forget your speech," she said as a final thought before following Sirius outside. And then they were gone. A few minutes later, when Mary noticed she had been staring into the distance the entire time, she got up from the couch, cleaned up the mess in the room with a wave of her wand and headed upstairs; feeling anxious, nervous and excited at the same time.

The next day, Mary and Sirius woke up long before their alarm would have gone off. They didn't talk much, even though both of them knew the other was awake. Instead, they merely spooned and watched how the heavy fog hugging the house slowly lifted a bit. There was an awkward tension between them; Mary realized that Sirius knew perfectly well that something was bugging her, but he didn't say anything about it and Mary reasoned he was assuming she was just pondering over her speech. Which she was, more or less. At last, when it was almost time to get up, Sirius raised an arm and set off the alarm about a minute before it would have gone off.

They both took a shower and while Sirius was preparing breakfast, Mary stood in front of the closet, wondering what she would wear. Her eyes lingered on the purple and grey dress Brice used to like so much, but Mary sincerely doubted it would fit in her current condition. Besides, it was a funeral, so Mary decided on wearing a black velvet skirt, a simple black shirt with a V-neck and black heels with a pointy nose instead.

She applied a little make up (waterproof mascara, just in case), used a beauty spell to pin up her hair in a nonchalant knut and headed downstairs to join Sirius. Again, they ate their breakfast in silence, each drowned in their own thoughts. Afterwards, they put on their robes – Sirius insisted on Mary wearing a scarf, even though it wasn't cold outside (just damp) – and walked to his motorbike. He conjured a helmet for her, which she eyed wearily. "Oh, please."

"You should wear this for your own protection, you know that," he replied. "Besides, it'll keep your ears warm."

"Ruin my hair, you mean."

"And I will love you anyway, with or without flattened hair." He shot her the sweetest look, but Mary continued to frown at the helmet in his hands. "Fine," Sirius sighed at last. "I'll fix your hair when we get there. Now put it on."

"Thanks," she replied. "But I think I'll ask Lily instead."

"Whatever you say," he sighed. "Are you ready to go?"

Mary nodded and slowly put on the helmet, trying to mess up her hair as little as possible. "I think so," she said quietly once she had adjusted the protective headgear. "It's just… After today, the mourning period will offically be over."

"Actually, I think getting some closure might do you some good," Sirius said after shooting her a close look, making her realize that her boyfriend might understand her comtemplation a lot better than she thought. "Now, hop on," he said while putting on his own helmet.

Brice grew up in Canterbury and her family still lived there, so that's where the funeral was held. When Sirius and Mary arrived at the church, they soon realized that many Order-members had already arrived. They briefly talked to Marlene, Hagrid and Peter at the front door before they headed inside. Mary hardly had time to admire the church's beautiful scenery, because her eyes were immediately drawn to the oaken coffin near the altar and Remus, not standing that far away from it. Sirius was pulling her along by the hand towards him, but she quickly excused herself and fleed to the bathroom as she pointed to her hair and urgently whispered: "I'll just go and fix this myself!"

Sirius remained patient with her. "Fine. I'll be with Remus if you need me."

Mary nodded and hurried to the bathroom, inwardly reprimanding herself for avoiding Remus, Brice's family and Brice's body like this. Fixing her hair and make up only took a minute and after she had poured some icecold water from the faucet on her wrists to calm down, she looked up into the mirror to shoot herself a stern look. "Enough of this nonsense. You partly caused this, so now you go inside and deal with the consequences like you should."

She walked back into the curch and looked around if she could spot Sirius and Remus. But no such luck, at least they were no longer standing near the coffin. On the other hand, this gave her the time and space to look at Brice's body without having to deal with anyone else there. She carefully walked through the aisle, politely nodding to other visitors on the way and trying to subdue the clacking of her heels on the church's marble floor.

Then Mary had finally reached the altar. The muffled whispers in the church slowly died away as she finally dared to stare down at the girl in the wooden casket. Brice looked… there was no other word for it: serene. It was like she was merely sleeping. Her face was pale and seemed to be embraced by her wavy blonde hair. But there were no bruises or scrapes on her face; no visible traces showing the awful truth, that her friend had been buried alive under an enormous pile of rocks and, in all prohability, slowly suffocated due to the lack of oxygen.

Mary's fingers had clasped the edge of the coffin, her nails pouring into the soft silky fabric on the inside. Once again she was biting her lip to keep herself from crying. She blinked, trying to steady her breathing and reduce the stinging in her eyes. After another moment, she shot another look at her friend's angelic face. She slowly bent down to give Brice a kiss on her forehead. It was like kissing a bloody icicle. Brice's skin felt cold and lifeless. Which made sense, of course, but it didn't lessen the impact on Mary. She gulped and whispered softly: "Oh Brice, I am so, so, sorry. Please forgive me.."

"-For what?" a male voice suddenly sounded right next to her.

Mary jerked up her head and found herself staring at Brice's father. "Mr. McDonald."

"Hello Mary," he said kindly. "It is good to see you."

"Yes, I'm glad to be here too."

"If I may be so bold to ask: why were you asking for forgiveness?"

"Ehm," she said, trying to win time and think of a good excuse. "It's complicated."

"Try me."

"Well ehm, I was apologizing that I couldn't have visited Brice's eh… body anytime sooner."

"But everyone knows you had other things on your mind," McDonald said, shooting a sad look at his daughter's coffin. "Are you ready for your speech?"

"Yes, are you?"

"Oh dear, I won't be speeching at the funeral. Perhaps later… No, my wife will do the honours at the service. Speaking of which, the funeral is about to start. Why don't you go back to your friends?"

Mary nodded. "I will and…" she hesitated. "Good luck."

McDonald nodded back and walked to the first row to sit next to his grieving wife, Brice's mother. Mary headed over to the left side of the church and the third row to sit down. She was surprised to see that a pale Remus (which had nothing to do with the upcoming full moon) was sitting next to Sirius. But, realizing she could not postpone the confrontation any longer, she walked over there anyway and sat down. Sirius immediately put an arm around her. "I saw you were talking to Brice's dad. You okay?"

"I think so," she mumbled. "He's a broken man." She finally dared to glance at Remus, who was looking at her with an unreadable expression in his light brown eyes, and Mary feared he was about to accuse her of murdering his girlfriend. Instead, he merely said: "Hi."

"Hi," she whispered back. "How're you?"

Remus took a deep breath and smiled bravely. "I've been better. You?"

Mary was about to say that her feelings didn't really matter at the moment when the memorial service begun with a slow classical music piece, and already Mary could hear those distinctive funeral sounds of sniffing or even loudly wailing guests. This got worse when Brice's mother gave a very emotional speech, in which she practically outlined the entire life of her daughter, revealing facts even Mary and Lily hadn't heard before.

After another musical interlude, it was Remus's turn to get onto the stage. Mary's heart missed a beat when he looked up from his speech to reveal a shimmer in his eyes. She had _never_ seen Remus cry before, and it was one of the most heartbreaking and beautiful things ever. But perhaps this was simply because Remus was simply too grieved to succesfully hide his true emotions, which he probably could have done in any other situation.

Mary missed most of Remus's speech because she was too busy to restrain herself from crying. It was only when she started to study the back of the row in front of her that she caught the final, and most important, part.

"What I'm basically trying to say is," Remus said, "is how important Brice was, is and will remain, even though she is gone. Brice was the first girl who took me for what I am, which is something I thought impossible for years. She showed me the meaning of love, and…" He swallowed audibly and Mary noticed that both Sirius and James were shifting uncomfortably in their seats. "She made me the person I am today, and I couldn't be more grateful for that. And I promise to cherish it for the rest of my life. I love you." He stepped down and walked straight to the coffin, pulled a single white rose from his robes and carefully placed it on top of the casket.

The church couldn't have been more quiet with the exception of those few wailing guests, who were crying even more intensive than before. When the song "Why worry now" from the Dire Straits ended, Mary looked at Lily. It was their turn. How on earth were they supposed to speech properly after Remus's loving and incredibly saddening words? Lily was already sniffing when they climbed the stage together.

However, Mary had to go first and she managed to keep her voice steady when she spoke about meeting Brice for the first time. "I remember it like yesterday. There I was, a little ignorant girl on that immense platform, no clue where I was supposed to go. And there she was, inviting me to come along – I remember thinking she was a second year student - and of course I said yes, relieved that at least _someone_ was talking to me, and after we picked up an equally confused redhaired girl in front of a carriage, our trio was complete.

"And we would remain this close throughout our years at school," Lily continued in a wavering voice. "Unable to argue longer than a few days, always backing each other up when we had to. And we have been doing that until last week, when Brice was… t-taken from us." She sniffed. "It's not fair that this happened to Brice, of all people. She was a caring person and…" Her lip started to quiver. It was then that Mary realized Lily should have done the first and lighter part of the speech. She shot her friend another look, who still tried to hold back her tears, but was failing miserably.

Mary decided it would be best to take over. "Ehm," she said while wrapping an arm around a weeping Lily and simultaneously trying to glance down at the speech. "She was a caring person and did not deserve to die. But know that although her life may be lost, the memory of who she was will not. Dear Brice, we will keep you alive in our hearts. Wherever you are right now, we hope you're at peace and waiting for us to rejoin you one day."

At this point, even Mary's voice started to waver, but thankfully Lily had regained her composure slightly. "Thanks," she whispered to Mary, who smiled back weakly. Lily took a deep breath and continued with the final – less sad – part.

"Sorry about before," she apologized before continuing: "Anyone who knew Brice knows how much she loved music. She once even metioned that, should she predecease me, she would like to hear "Fields of Gold" on her funeral. Well, who are we to ignore that final wish? This one's for you, sweetie. Farewell."

Mary had never heard this acoustic cover of Sting's famous song that was being performed by a woman but, as she and Lily were descending the stage and walking back to their seats, it was already sending shivers down her spine:

_You'll remember me when the west wind moves  
Among the fields of barley  
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky  
When we walked in fields of gold_

So she took her love for to gaze awhile  
Among the fields of barley  
In his arms she fell as her hair came down  
Among the fields of gold

Will you stay with me will you be my love  
Among the fields of barley  
And you can tell the sun in his jealous sky  
When we walked in fields of gold

I never made promises lightly  
And there have been some that I've broken  
But I swear in the days still left  
We will walk in fields of gold  
We'll walk in fields of gold

I never made promises lightly  
And there have been some that I've broken  
But I swear in the days still left  
We will walk in fields of gold  
We'll walk in fields of gold

Many years have passed since those summer days  
Among the fields of barley  
See the children run as the sun goes down  
As you lie in fields of gold

You'll remember me when the west wind moves  
Among the fields of barley  
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky  
When we walked in fields of gold  
When we walked in fields of gold  
When we walked in fields of gold

With the last notes of the song slowly dying away, Brice's memorial service had come to an end. The actual burial took place afterwards. Miraculously, Mary still hadn't cried near the end, although she had to admit that perhaps she was just too sad to cry, if that made any sense. However, when the funeral guests were gathering in a nearby restaurant for a drink, she remained feeling listless and… empty. She noticed that she even felt annoyed with Moody and Edgar, who were talking loudly and occassionally even laughing.

Mary realized they weren't not allowed to do so and instead of telling them off, she excused herself to Sirius, Lily and James – holding Harry – and left to be on her own for a moment. When she got outside, she saw that the restaurant garden was looking out over the graveyard. The damp and misty atmosphere gave the place an eerie sight and Mary tried hard not to think about Brice. Instead, she walked to the steps that led to the graveyard. When she was sitting down on the damp and mossy steps, she spotted Remus standing only a few feet away from her, leaning against a tree as he stared into the distance. Did he know she was there? Mary had no idea, but realized it was already too late to hide and flopped down anyway. "Hey," she said.

Remus looked back. "Hi," he said after a pause. "Too crowded inside for you as well, huh?"

"Too cheerful."

He snorted silently. "I get what you mean." He shot her a look before making up his mind and sitting down next her. "Compliments on your speech, by the way."

"Thanks," Mary muttered. "You too. Look Remus, let's not pretend any longer. I can't stand it that everyone is being so cautious with me. We all know I'm responsible and-"

He looked confused. "What?"

"I'm sorry," she said. For the third time that day tears were trying to break through her defences and she blinked them away furiously. "I'll never be able to apologize to Brice, but I can tell you. I'm so incredibly sorry for what I did."

Remus tiredly rubbed his eyes. "Would you stop being so cryptic? What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

"Brice!" Mary cried. "And how she died! I left her behind in that passage when I went looking for Lily. I chose Lily over Brice!"

"Mary…" Remus said slowly, frowning as he was starting to comprehend what this was about. "Are you blaming yourself for what happened at Esha Ness?"

"Yes," she said, angrily pulling some moss from one of the steps. "Because I _am_ responsible."

Remus was shaking his head like he wasn't believing his ears. "Are you mad?! If there's _anyone_ to blame, it's Brice. She insisted on going there. Not you, not Lily… Brice."

"But…"

"Mary," he said urgently and grabbed her arms. "You're not to blame. In fact, you were a downright hero for going back to save Lily. If it weren't for you, we might have been burying her as well."

Mary blinked as his words were slowly sinking in. Now that he mentioned it, he did have a point. Mary couldn't remember Sirius or Dumbledore telling her something like this, but that was probably because she had never asked. And she probably wouldn't have believed them anyway if they did. It was like Remus's words seemed more important to her at the moment. Mary could literally feel a heavy burden of guilt being lifted from her shoulders. Once again tears were shimmering in her eyes but this time, she did not blink them away. "I…"

"It's not your fault," he repeated softly and pulled her into a close hug. And then, as if by miracle, Mary started to cry. After blocking her emotions for so long, it seemed that right now, the flood gates had been opened wide. Tear after tear was streaming down her face; she was even starting to hyperventilate from gasping for air. Remus was trying hard to calm her down, but his attempts were in vain; Mary had started crying hysterically while tightly grasping his robes. If she could have talked, she would have tried to blame the freaky crying fit on the pregnancy hormones, but she could barely breathe, let one speak. Then suddenly, she heard Remus call: "Oh thank Merlin, James!"

"What's going on?!" James cried.

"Get Sirius, now!"

Mary could hear James running off. She continued to try and relax, but she just couldn't stop crying. Another minute later she heard two pairs of footsteps approaching fast, and then she could feel Sirius dropping down next to them. He immediately pulled her in his arms to give Remus some well-needed space. "What happened?" he asked urgently as he tried to calm her down.

"She was blaming herself for Brice's death," Remus explained.

_"What?!"_

"I know, we all knew something was up, but this…" He shook his head.

"Silly, silly girl..." Sirius had put his chin on Mary's head. He was gently rocking her back and forth while whispering soothing words to her: "Shhh, it's okay… Calm down, calm down, calm down…" And with every "calm down", Mary managed to steady her breathing a bit more until she was merely sniffing. Tears were still falling from her eyes, but at least her breathing had gone back to normal. Sirius cupped her face gently. "Better?"

Mary nodded slowly, torn between feeling ashamed and relieved. James and Remus were still watching them quietly. "Sirius, I think it's best if you take her home," James said. "She must be exhausted. We'll explain to the others later."

Remus nodded and bent down to kiss Mary on her cheek. "I'll come by tomorrow, promise."

Mary hardly dared to look at him. "I'd really like that," she whispered.

James and Remus walked to the restaurant and Sirius pulled a weakened Mary back up. He guided her to his motorbike and before he handed her the helmet, he pulled one of Sauvage's energy potions from his pocket. Mary looked surprised when she took it from him. He smiled sadly when he noticed her expression. "In case of emergency..."

Mary didn't reply and downed the potion, ignoring the disgusting taste. When Sirius had handed her the helmet, he hesitated momentarily before saying: "Mary please... Never, _ever_, keep something this big from me again."

"I won't," she mumbled.

"I mean it, Mare. You may not have noticed, but I've been worrying sick about you the last few days. I knew something was up, but couldn't place it… You should have talked to me."

"Sorry."

He shrugged. "It's okay now. Just promise me that from now on, you will."

Mary looked up and squeezed his hand, realizing she should have included him all along. "I will."

End of Update

A/N: Why worry now - Was this song already released in 1980?  
And two: Fields of Gold (Eva Cassidy) - If you don't know this song yet, listen to it. This song was played on the funeral of Karen, one of my best friends, who was 16 when she died (she was riding a bike and got hit by a car). I still miss her and hereby dedicate this chapter to her. Mis je, Karen-XXX

I love reviews, so please don't forget to let me know what you thought of the chapter. I hope it didn't make you feel too depressed, but it's a funeral… Nothing cheerful about that. Here's a little teaser of what is coming next:

"_Wormtail__," Sirius said, breaking the tense silence, "Did you know Alison became a Death Eater?"_

Peter looked up at him in shock. "No! I mean eh…," he added with a guilty look on his face. _"Not immediately…"_

"_What do you mean, no __ "__immediately"__?" Sirius inquired sharply._

"Padfoot…" James said reproachfully. Sirius closed his mouth and shrugged, but he did listen to his friend and stopped cross-examinating Peter for the moment. After James had shot him another annoyed look, he said: "Look Pete, you can tell us. We're your mates, so whatever it is… We won't tell the rest of the Order if you don't want us too."

Sirius wasn't so sure if he was agreeing with James, but Peter did seem more keen to talk now James had promised to keep his secret. "I knew about it," he whispered. "Approximately two weeks before Mary found out."


	71. A New Dawn, A New Day

Chapter Seventy-One

**Chapter Seventy-One**

The following morning, Sirius woke up early with a start. He realized soon enough that he had woken up from a nightmare; he vaguely remembered dreaming that Mary had vanished without a trace after Brice's funeral, but when he looked sideways, she was right there next to him, sleeping peacefully. Sirius closed his eyes in relief, sighed and fell back to his pillow.

This sudden movement didn't wake Mary up, but she did turn around in her sleep, facing away from him. Sirius stared at the back of her neck and messy hair for a moment while thinking about last night. After he had brought her home, they talked about the last few days and what had been bothering her so much. Or tried was more like it, because every single time Sirius mentioned Brice, Mary started crying. In the end, he had decided it was best to call it a night, get some sleep and try talking about it again the next day.

Mary didn't object and they went to bed without saying much else at all. Or well, she fell asleep almost at once. It was a different story for Sirius. He continued staring at her face for another hour, trying to reflect on how she could have been thinking she was responsible for Brice's death, until finally, he too dozed off in a restless sleep.

And now, a few hours later on a particularly rainy October morning, Sirius still didn't understand. He was dying to find out the reason for Mary's sense of guilt, and what he could have done to prevent her from feeling this way. Sirius frowned slightly while watching Mary turning onto her back. He couldn't work it out. Over the past days he had considered many possibilities: intense grief, the aftermath of the accident, her fragile condition… Heck, even prenatal depression had crossed his mind, but never, not in a hundred years, would he have guessed she was feeling guilty. He still wanted to discuss the matter, if mentioning Brice's mere name wouldn't constantly bring her to tears. Sirius sighed. He considered getting up, but it was still so early on a Sunday morning and instead, he snuggled up to Mary and closed his eyes. He could snooze for another while, just a few minutes…

When Sirius woke up for the second time that day, he noticed Mary was already out of bed. Considering her side of the bed felt quite cold, Sirius reasoned she must have been awake for a while. He stretched lazily and got up, walked to the bathroom and grabbed a pair of jeans and sweater on the way. After taking a long shower in an attempt to wake up properly and brushing his teeth, he headed down the stairs. He accidentally stepped on Coco's tail, who was laying right in front of the stairs. She hissed at him for his stupidity, but Sirius wasn't impressed. He simply picked up the, now grumpy cat and – ignoring the nails of its paws viciously digging into his arms – carried her to the kitchen.

Mary was sitting at the table with an empty plate and a large mug of tea in front of her; reading the Daily Prophet and to Sirius's surprise: fully dressed and well groomed. Her recently washed long hair fell in loose curls over her back and her cashmere v-neck sweater accentuated her little bump nicely. Sirius put Coco down on the table. The cat hurried over to Mary, who put down her tea to scratch Coco behind the ears.

Coco purred loudly and shot a haughty look at Sirius, who rolled his eyes in return. There were times he would love to hex that cat for being so clever when it came to drawing a girl's attention. Good thing he could occassionally vent off his frustration by transforming into his dog form and chasing Coco around the streets of London. Not that he would ever tell Mary that. "Swell," he muttered quasi-annoyed while watching how Mary was carressing Coco. "Saying hello to Coco like that while you're totally ignoring me. That's fantastic, just great…"

Mary looked up and smiled at him. It had only been a week, but it seemed like an eternity Sirius had seen her smile like that. "Come here you," she said softly.

Sirius crouched down in front of her chair and Mary tenderly cupped his face and gave him a long kiss. Again, to him it seemed like ages she had kissed him like that, and he responded to it all too eagerly. When he (and not she!) pulled back at last, she was grinning. "Good morning."

"Morning," he replied softly before he smirked at Coco, who - if cats could roll their eyes she would have given him a run for his money - flicked her tail in an annoyed manner before jumping off the table and leaving the kitchen. Sirius's smirk became slightly bigger.

Mary noticed something was going on. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing. Just non-verbally making clear to Coco who's the boss around here."

She raised an eyebrow, but Sirius didn't feel the need to explain more than strictly necessary. He got up, ignored the tingling in his legs by having crouched down for so long and conjured himself a plate of toast, sandwich fillings and a cup of black coffee. "How are you?" he asked after he sat down.

"Better, I think," Mary said after a long pause. She played with the handle of her mug. "I mean, I'm still sad of course, and slightly embarrased… But I think I stopped feeling guilty."

"You think?"

"_Know_," she corrected herself quickly. "I know now that I'm not to blame."

"Good." He shot her a long look. "Mare," he asked her carefully, "How did you work out… I mean, how could you-?"

"-Blame myself?" she finished for him.

He nodded. "Yeah. Every time I dared asking you about this yesterday, you burst into tears and I don't want to eh… make you cry again."

"It's okay, Sirius. I can manage to stay calm, or at least I hope so."

"Alright, so how did you figure out you were responsible for what happened?"

Mary didn't reply immediately. She stared down at her hands and fiddled with her engagement ring while considering her words carefully. At last she sighed and said: "It's just… When I used to imagine about having to choose between Lily and Brice, I always imagined it would be like… Like Sophie's Choice."

Srius shot her a blank stare. "Sophie's what?"

"Choice. It's a book on the Second World War in the Muggle world where a captured woman is being forced by a German officer to choose between her two kids. The child she doesn't pick will be discharged and killed immediately."

"That's eh… That's horrible. So who did she choose?"

"Her son, but never mind that," Mary replied. She sighed and left her ring alone. "Anyway, when it _actually_ came to the point of choosing, I didn't even hesitate. All I could think about was Lily, actually. Bringing Brice to safety, or the fact that I was jeopordizing our baby's life, never even crossed my mind."

Sirius swallowed a mouthful of toast and shot her an incredulous look. "But you only left Brice behind – and that is _if_ you left her at all – when you thought she was safe."

"True, but she ran into the wrong passage after I turned back."

"And how in Merlin's name are you to blame for that?"

Mary stared at him for a moment, biting her lip. "Hang on," she said and got up from her seat. Sirius was about to get up too when she put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head. "Don't bother, I feel much stronger now. I suspect my recovery got somewhat blocked by my guilt. Just wait here."

She left the kitchen and Sirius could her hear ascending the stairs. He wondered what could be found in their bedroom that had made her feel so guilty about Brice's death. He didn't have to wait long to find out, because only a minute later, Mary returned to the kitchen, carrying a small book. She handed it over and Sirius frowned down at it. "What's this?"

"Fabian's gift," she replied while starting to clean up the breakfast mess with her wand.

"Fabian?!"

"The birthday gift Molly Weasley gave me at his funeral, remember?"

"Oh." Sirius picked up the card that had fallen out when he opened the book. He snorted when he read the note. Good old Fabian, he thought. The guy may have had a severe crush on Mary, but even he had to admit that Fabian Prewett was a wonderful guy. He looked up at Mary. "I still don't see why…"

"Open it at page thirty-nine," she said quietly.

Sirius flipped through the book until he had reached the right page. "The Four-Point Spell?" he frowned. "What does that have to do with Brice?"

"I didn't read this book until _after_ she died. If I would have looked at it before, I could have told her about the spell in time," Mary reasoned.

Sirius's brow furrowed even more. "I'm not following you here."

Mary leaned back against the kitchen sink and crossed her arms. "If I taught Brice that spell, she wouldn't have gotten lost and… well, died."

"That doesn't make any sense at all."

"It doesn't?"

"No." Sirius got up and walked to the kitchen sink, tapping the cover of the book. "Do you know why?"

Mary turned to him and cocked her head to the side. "No, but do enlighten me."

"Brice was in a hurry, no?"

"Yeah, she had to get outside as soon as possible to warn you guys."

"Okay, then I'm sure she didn't choose a passage at all. She just blindly stormed into a corridor – which she thought was the right way to go – and that turned out to be the wrong one. A catastrophic mistake, but either way… Nothing more than a matter of bad luck."

Mary stared at the framed picture of her, Lily and Brice in France, on the kitchen wall. "Brice always had an awful sense of direction."

"Exactly," he nodded. "But seriously Mare, take it from an – almost-Auror -, if the Ministry did investigate this case, you would have been cleared at once. In fact, you might even received an Order of Merlin for true demonstrated heroism."

Mary scowled. "Like I would accept that."

Sirius arched an eyebrow. "Receiving an Order of Merlin is a great honor."

"I suppose it is, when you deserve it."

Sirius sighed impatiently. "Mary, not _this_ again…"

"Sorry," Mary mumbled as she massaged her temples. "I'm still adjusting here."

Sirius got hold of her hands and squeezed them gently. "And for the record: Charms, fourth grade, around March, I think."

"Huh?"

"That's when Flitwick taught us the Four-Point Spell."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "How is it you know exactly when Flitwick handled that spell when I'm not remembering it at all?"

He smirked. "Photographic memory, love."

Mary rolled her eyes and turned to conjure some fresh orange juice. She handed him one of the glasses. He gulped it down in one go. Mary shot him a curious look. "In a hurry, aren't we?'

Sirius nodded as he put the empty glass in the sink. "I'm meeting James, Frank and Peter at the Leaky Cauldron in about twenty minutes. Think you'll manage to be on your own this afternoon?"

"Yeah, of course, but I'm not going to be alone. Remus sent me an owl this morning. He's coming over to cook dinner and well…" she shrugged. "To talk things through, I suppose."

"Sounds lovely," Sirius said quickly, accioing his robes from the hallway to put them on. "I would like to see him joining us later, but I can understand going to the pub to play cards might be a little too soon."

Mary nodded and stood on her toes to kiss him goodbye. "I'll pass on the message. Dinner should be ready at six-thirty. Don't be late."

He grinned at her. "No, _mum_," he said and quickly disapparated before she would be able to smack him.

When Sirius entered the Leaky Cauldron, he noticed that Frank and James were already sitting in the pub (crowded as usual) at a round table in the corner. Peter on the other hand had not yet arrived. This was most convenient, considering he and James were planning to talk to – or question if you will – him about Alison Zabini. They hadn't talked to Frank about their plan yet, but were almost sure he was curious about Peter's relationship with her as well. Sirius greeted Tom the barkeeper animatedly when he was ordering a few Butterbeers before carrying the bottles over to the table. "Hullo," he said as cheerful as possible after flopping down next to Frank.

"Hi," Frank replied.

"Hey," James said. "Frank's in as well."

"Great," Sirius nodded as he passed out the bottles of Butterbeers to his friends.

"Yeah, I was already wondering about the whole Alison-story. Something about it just doesn't seem right, does it?" Frank said. He shot Sirius a concerned look. "How's Mary doing?"

Sirius replied that she was feeling better and explained about Fabian's book and the Four-Point Spell. Frank merely smiled sadly and shook his head, but James scowled and rolled his eyes. "Well, at least now I can explain to Lil what the hell was up with Mary. She didn't sleep all night and for once Harry didn't have anything to do with that. But honestly, you would want to seriously shake up that Woods if she wasn't so darn cute and innocent."

"Tell me about it," Sirius sighed. After he took a gulp from his buttebreer, he suddenly raised his bottle. "To better times," he stated solemnly.

"To better times." James and Frank tapped his bottle with their butterbeers. "Your birthday for example," James suggested as he put his bottle back down. "That's in November, so not too soon after Brice's funeral, and Merlin knows we could all use a party."

"Who's throwing a party?" a voice suddenly sounded next to him. Peter had finally arrived, fifteen minutes late as usual but on the bright side, he did bring along a new round of Butterbeers.

"I am," Sirius said, taking the tray from Peter and putting it down. "Or at least thinking about it."

"Oh cool," Peter nodded as he sat down next to James and uncorked his Butterbeer with his wand. "That would be a nice change after all those attacks and funerals."

Frank arched an eyebrow. "_All those_ attacks and funerals? We've one had one of each recently and that's more than enough, I would say. Unless you know about more attacks to come?"

Peter flushed. "I- I didn't mean it like that, I just…"

"That's okay, Wormtail," James smiled while patting his friend on the back. "Sometimes you're just a bit clumsy with your choice of words."

Peter grinned back gratefully. He took a sip of his Butterbeer and looked at Sirius, who was eyening him curiously. "Is Mary feeling better?"

"Much better," Sirius replied before suddenly changing the subject. "Before you arrived we were just discussing that slimy git Snivellus who joined the Death Eaters when we remembered about Alison."

He noticed Peter had suddenly started to study the tag on his bottle rather attentively and exchanged a glance with James, who cleared his throat and said: "We've all been busy with Brice's death over the last few days, but now that everything is getting back to normal, we're curious about how things turned out between you guys."

"You never talked about her, if you don't mind me saying," Frank chimed in. "I didn't even know things were _that_ serious between the two of you."

"It wasn't all that serious. At least… At least not to her," Peter said, faltering slightly. His ears were reddening more by the minute. He didn't seem to be at ease at all, which didn't surprise Sirius. In all the years he had known Peter, his friend never felt comfortable with talking about himself. Not even to mention his love life which, as far as Sirius knew, didn't exist. But still, there was something disturbing about his behaviour today. Sirius couldn't exactly point out what it was, but he could sense something was really bothering his friend. "Peter," Sirius said, breaking the tense silence. "Did you know Alison became a Death Eater?"

Peter looked up at him in shock. "No! I mean eh…," he added with a guilty look on his face. "Not immediately…"

"What do you mean, not _immediately_?" Sirius inquired sharply.

"Padfoot…" James said reproachfully. Sirius closed his mouth and shrugged, but he did listen to his friend and stopped cross-examinating Peter. After James had shot him another annoyed look, he said: "Look Pete, you can tell us. We're your mates, so whatever it is… We won't tell the rest of the Order if you don't want us too."

Sirius wasn't so sure if he agreed, but Peter did seem more keen to talk now James had promised to keep it a secret. "I knew about it," he whispered. "Approximately two weeks before Mary found out."

"How did you know she crossed over?" James asked.

"I dropped by unexpectedly when she was cleaning her house. She was only wearing a tank top and forgot to pull on her robes."

"That makes sense," Frank said kindly. "But why didn't you inform James, Sirius or Remus about it?"

"I…" Peter bit his lip. "Oh Merlin, you wouldn't understand."

"Try us," Sirius said while ushering Tom to bring them another round of Butterbeers.

"I… I thought it wasn't too late yet, so I wanted to try and talk her out of it."

Sirius snorted incredulously. "Peter, you daft git! Everyone knows there's no turning back once you've joined the ranks of Voldemort!"

Tom, who was just appearing next to them with the new Butterbeers, almost dropped his tray out of shock. "Sirius," he said, frowning. "You're a good man and a great customer, but if you ever mention He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named in this pub again, I will have to ask you to leave and never come back."

"I'm sorry, Tom," Sirius said apologetically as he took the tray from Tom. "It won't happen again, you have my word."

Tom merely nodded and hurried back to the counter, where Crouch was waiting for a refill of his glass of Firewhiskey. "Close call, Padfoot," James grinned, raising his beer.

Sirius sniggered. "Never mind. Peter, you were saying…" he said, waving his hand in the air.

Peter shot him a confused look. "I wasn't saying anything."

"Oh. Right then, please explain why you still didn't warn us when you found out Alison _definitely_ wasn't considering to drop out of the Death Eaters."

"Because that was about the time Mary found out. And also-"

"I wouldn't consider "two weeks" as anytime soon," Sirius interrupted.

"Padfoot!" James called and he chucked a coaster at his head. "Wil you just shut your mouth for one second? Let the man talk."

"Fine," Sirius said, rolling his eyes.

"You mentioned Mary discovering Alison's secret soon enough, and then you said…" James said encouragingly.

"Er... well," Peter said as he shot a weary look at Sirius's glinting eyes, who was positively glaring at James now. "I didn't say anything because…"

He hesitated. "Yes…?" Frank asked.

"Because…" Peter gulped and had started to shred his coaster into tiny bits.

"You didn't want the girls to get angry at you?" James suggested with twinkling eyes.

"Er… No, it's just…"

"Because you feared Mad-Eye Moody would permanently transfigure you into a grasshopper?" Sirius noted with an amused look on his face.

"Guys, this is not funny!" Peter suddenly called, shutting up both James and Sirius at once; something that hadn't happened in years. He was now looking desperate. "It's because… Because I loved her."

His confession got followed by a stunned silence. Sirius didn't know whether to burst out laughing or pat his friend proudly on the back. Little Petey falling in love with a girl, who would have thought… He noticed James was just as flabbergasted and Peter looked even more uncomfortable than before. Thankfully, Frank broke the silence with a dry: "Well dear me, I never saw _that_ one coming."

James, Sirius and even Peter burst out laughing. When they finally calmed down after another few minutes, Peter became serious again. "Look, I would have told you guys, but I just needed time to sort things out."

"Did Alison love you back?" Sirius asked.

Peter attempted to laugh, but it turned out sounding fake and hollow. "I'm Peter, Sirius. I've never been loved by a woman other than my mum and I doubt I ever will."

"Come on, Wormtail, that's not true," James said soothingly.

"Yeah," Sirius agreed. "I'm sure one day-"

Peter shrugged. "Whatever. Anyway, I'm fine with the way things are. And I've talked more about myself the last half hour than I did the entire last year. Can we just go back to playing cards now?"

Sirius considered saying something more comforting to Peter, but after a moment of silence, he, James and Frank silently agreed on dropping the subject and going to back to what they had come for: playing a game of cards.

A few hours, several card games and many Butterbeers later, the guys decided it was time to leave. James went home to Lily and Harry, Frank to Alice and Neville, Sirius would be going to Mary and Remus and Peter… He would go home alone. Sirius felt bad for his friend and invited him to come along, but Peter declined and said he had another appointment to go to later that night.

Sirius had a good time at dinner with Mary and Remus, who had comforted each other throughout the afternoon. Mary said she had even cried more than last night (Sirius suddenly felt even more relieved that he went to the pub), but that she was feeling a lot better now. And Remus… Remus coped. He joined in on the conversation while eating their roasted seabream, salad and roast potatoes and Sirius even thought he caught a smile at one point, but Remus never truly seemed to be there with them.

Sirius made a mental note to inform Remus about Peter and Alison another time, and when their friend went back home and Sirius had cleaned up the mess in the kitchen, he put his arm around Mary and suggested going to bed. She shot him a look. "As long as you don't think I will…"

Sirius couldn't help but chuckle. "And what makes you think I would want to?"

"Because of the look on your face. I know that look… And it's not that I don't want to, but I'm not sure… it could be dangerous for the baby."

"Fine, you win," Sirius laughed while guiding Mary upstairs. "But you better ask Sauvage about that soon or I might get really frustrated."

Mary kissed him. "Likewise," she grinned before heading to the bathroom to brush her teeth and hair.

After they had undressed themselves and crawled into bed, Mary lay close to him and placed her face on his chest. Sirius was about to relax when he realized he had forgotten to kiss her and the baby goodnight; a ritual he hadn't executed for a long time. He decided to make up for the lost time and suddenly ducked under the blankets. He bent over Mary's belly and right when she was saying "Sirius, what are you doing?", he started placing tiny kisses on her stomach and slowly worked his way up to her face.

When his hair finally reappeared from under the top of the blankets, his eyes met Mary's surprised but amused glance. "What?-"

"I had some serious catching up to do," he grinned. He rested his chin on her chest. "You know what James suggested about my upcoming birthday?"

Mary tenderly stoke a few stray locks of hair from his face. "What?"

"He thought we should throw a party. A real one, you know, just to try and get back our lives back on track. Why would you say if I'll throw a big birthday party in the Leaky Cauldron next month?"

Mary smiled. She was still stroking his hair, even though there were no more locks dangling in front of his eyes. "That," she said, "is the best suggestion I've heard in days."

End of Update

**A/N: So this party will be a nice getaway from all the sadness and war stuff. Yep, it means the depressing updates have ended. For now, that is… Anyway, I hope you guys liked the guys. Let me know what you think! And finally, a little teaser of what is coming next:**

_Mary could see something was bugging him. "What?" she said encouragingly._

"I talked to a girl earlier… Elizabeth, a colleague from Lily," Remus clarified at Mary's questioning look. "She was nice and I really liked her, but… Now I feel all guilty. I mean, Brice… It's so confusing."

Mary knew what he was talking about, but she decided to cheer him up rather than talking him down. "What were you expecting, Remus?"

He frowned at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you're single and cute as hell. What girl wouldn't fancy hooking up with you?"

A smile broke through his tired expression. "You think I'm cute? D_on't let Sirius hear you."_

She laughed. "Sirius has nothing to worry about, but Remus, it's not a crime to have some fun. I bet Brice would kick your butt if she knew you were sulking outside instead of partying with the rest of us."

Remus smiled sadly. "Quite a different point of view since the funeral, eh Mary?"

Mary blushed, fidgeting with the sleeve of her dress. "Well yeah, I try."


	72. Sirius's Birthday

Chapter Seventy-Two

**Chapter Seventy-Two**

There was going to be a party. If Mary was truly honest with herself, she had never expected the Order to approve of James's proposal to celebrate Sirius's 22nd birthday in style. She was already hearing Zabini's objections in her mind: "It will be an open invitation for Death Eaters to set the entire place on fire, with us in it." And not even to mention Moody's response to the Marauders party plans. But she could not have been more wrong. Not only did the entire Order approve of organizing a big party, they (including Dumbledore and Zabini) even encouraged it.

They thought it would be a way to let their hair down after all the drama from the last few months. As long as at least two Order-members would be keeping an eye on things throughout the night, everything should be fine. Dumbledore argued that, despite what had happened to Brice and the Order, there had been reasonably less attacks over the last months. Either Voldemort was taking a break or the Ministry was getting a better grip on the situation, although they reasoned the first option seemed much more likely.

Sirius decided to celebrate his birthday in a pub. The Dove clearly wasn't an option, considering they spent more than enough time there already in Order-meetings. There were only two other wizarding pubs in London; one was the Leaky Cauldron near Diagon Alley, the other The City Arms near Covent Garden, which was owned by a Squib and his Muggle wife. Sirius found out it was possible to hire The City Army on Friday, which meant his actual birthday would start at midnight.

Mary spent a long time thinking about what present she was giving Sirius. She soon figured out he would like to get the waterproof watch he had been raving about in the weeks before his birthday. At least, the countless hints he dropped whenever they passed the shop-window on Diagon Alley were pretty obvious. But Mary also wanted to give him something else, something less materialistic, to thank him for supporting her so well after Brice died, even when she had been so stupid to blame herself for what happened.

The problem was, she couldn't really think of anything original. Yes, of course she could recite a poem a sing a love song on the stage of the pub, but she wasn't so sure if Sirius was going to like that (she knew she wouldn't; speeching in public was not her biggest talent). Mary was just considering to sing him a song _after_ the party when – one week before the party – something better came along. Nate, her potion-brewing friend from St. Mungo's had tickets to a popular wizarding event which would take place at the end of February, but unfortunately he was unable to go. Many St. Mungo-employees were interested in buying the tickets and Mary knew she had to come up with something really good to persuade him. At first she tried to apply to Nate's better nature. "And now, ever since I'm in my fifth month of pregnancy," she complained to him one day at lunch, "I'm _so_ tired. I'm exhausted when I get home from work and Sirius needs to do all the cleaning and stuff. He's having a really hard time at the moment, you know."

Nate grinned after swallowing a mouthful of his ham sandwich. "Oh yes, sounds terrible. But what does that have to do with me, I wonder."

"Well… It's been a demanding time lately and I think he deserves… Awww Nate," Mary said, shooting him a sweet look. "It would make him so happy, and I would be forever grateful."

"Hmmm," he said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "You do know Gruber from Magical Maladies offered to lend me his flying Ferrari for a week, right?"

"Pleaseeeee?"

Nate laughed. "Mary, I love you, you know I do. But I'm sorry, you'll have to come up with something better than a lie."

she frowned. "A lie?"

"Yeah, I've been watching you lately and you're in the best shape since the beginning of the pregnancy."

"Alright, alright," Mary said laughing, nodding at Edgar Bones who was passing her on the way to another table to eat his lunch. "You're having a lot of night shifts in December, am I correct?"

Nate looked up with interest. "Go on."

It was no secret that Nate couldn't stand night shifts. Mary wasn't a big fan of them either, but she realized she didn't have a choice here. If she wanted to get her hands on those tickets… "I'll buy them _and_ deputize for you on three night shifts."

Nate considered this for a moment, then shook at his head. "Sorry, but that Ferrari still sounds more appealing to me."

Mary sighed. "Is there anything else I can do to persuade you?"

"Well, I can think of something…"

She smacked him with a folded Daily Prophet. "Git. What is your wife going to say about that? Come on, I'm being serious."

"Alright… You can have those tickets if, and _only_ if, you work six night shifts for me."

"_Six?_ Are you mad?" She pointed at her vastly growing stomach. "Pregnant woman, y'know?"

Nate's gaze dropped from her indignant face to her tummy and he sighed. "Fine… Five shifts."

"Four."

He grinned. "Done."

Mary let out a triumphant scream and hugged Nate in the middle of the crowded hospital canteen. It seemed that everyone immediately realized he had finally "sold" his precious tickets, resulting in some relieved sighs and many disappointed looks. But Nate stayed true to his word and handed the tickets over to Mary the next day, who managed to hide both the tickets and the watch from Sirius. This meant that even on the day of the party, he didn't have a clue what she was giving him. And although part of her wanted to give him the presents immediately, she forced herself to wait until the night of the party.

That date arrived sooner than later, and on that day, Sirius, Mary, James, Lily and Remus arrived at The City Arms in the afternoon. Peter was the only one who couldn't make it to the party, because he had other obligations he couldn't possibly get out of, or so he said. Mary didn't really care about that. She was much happier to see that Remus would be attending the party. He hadn't gone out much lately, which had everything to do with Brice's death. Sirius's party would be his first social event (if you left out the Order meetings) since the funeral and Mary intended to ensure he would have a good time.

Remus, Lily and James were standing near the back of the pub, trying to decide where they would create a dancing and sitting area. Sirius and Mary were standing in front of the bar next to bartender (and owner) Philip, who would take care of serving drinks as well as putting on the music. Philip had an extensive collection of records (from wizard bands like the Weird Sisters to succesful Muggle bands such as the Beatles, Rolling Stones, The Vogues and Bee Gees).

Philip left them on their own to sort out the records they definitely didn't want to hear. Sirius had started to throw out records of Celestina Warbeck ("Too boring"), The Swinging Hags ("I want people to enjoy the party, not run out screaming") and ABBA ("Brice would come back to haunt us forever") and Mary ducked behind the counter to fetch them some drinks, smiling as she remembered how much Brice had hated ABBA music when something extraordinary happened.

Mary hadn't eaten much that morning, because she wasn't feeling hungry. She had forced herself to eat a bowl of cornflakes to keep the baby going, but it hadn't tasted all that good. And now, for the first time in days, she felt really, _really_ hungry. And she didn't just want something to eat; she wanted to have something very specific. Crab stics, to be exact. Mary reached for her wand, conjured a plate of the famous delicacy and started to put the food into her mouth, hardly noticing what she was eating at all.

Sirius shot her a quizzical look over the box of records. "I didn't know you liked crab sticks."

"I don't," she replied, stuffing more sticks into her mouth.

He frowned. "Then why would you…? Oh, of course," he said, grinning as the realization dawned on his face.

Mary couldn't quite follow him. "I'm sorry?"

"You're craving! Didn't you just feel you had to have crab sticks at once?"

She chuckled. "Of course, _that_ makes sense. It's my fifth month after all…"

"But that's a good thing, isn't it? It means the baby is developing nicely, right?"

"Yes," Mary said. "Although Sauvage already told me everything was perfectly fine yesterday at my check-up and… Oh." She looked down at her stomach in surprise.

"What is it?" Sirius asked, sounding anxious.

But she didn't answer. Something inside her lower belly suddenly seemed to have bumped slightly. It was hard to explain, but it felt like someone let a bag of popcorn pop inside her body, like she was being kicked from the inside, only softly. She realized this could only mean one thing. She shot him an excited look. "The baby, I think I felt it kick!"

Sirius didn't know how fast he had to round the bar to get behind the counter. "Is it still there?"

Mary shook her head vehemently and as soon as she felt the baby kick again, she grabbed Sirius's hand and placed it on her lower abdomen. "Did you feel that?" she asked when the baby gave another kick.

He nodded, looking speechless. Mary placed both her hands over his and when he looked up into her eyes, she saw sheer happiness, something that hadn't been there in ages. They didn't speak, because there were no words that could describe what they were feeling. They just stared into each other's eyes, feeling happy for the first time in months. They must have been standing like this a lot longer than it seemed, because they suddenly heard an amused voice: "Is this a new way of sending telepathic thoughts to your baby? I must have missed out on that when Lily was pregnant with Harry."

James was leaning over the bar next to the box of records, holding up the newest record from the Weird Sisters. "Any objections to putting some music on?"

Sirius, who still had his hand on Mary's stomach, shook his head dazedly. "It kicked," he muttered.

James shot them a surprised look. "The baby, you mean?"

Mary could see Sirius was aching to give a cheeky reply to that Peteresk remark, but he didn't. Instead, he just smiled and nodded. James rounded the bar almost as quickly as Sirius had done, but before that he called to the others at the back of the pub: "Baby kick alert!"

Lily and Remus also hurried over to the bar and when they had all felt Mary's stomach, James was grinning widely. "This should be celebrated!" He conjured four glasses of champagne and shot an apologetic look at Mary. "Sorry you can't have this…"

"That's quite alright," Mary replied happily as she raised her glass of fresh orange juice. "Cheers."

The first party guests arrived at nine o'clock that night. An hour later, the pub was packed with Order-members and their families, colleagues and friends. Lily and James and Frank and Alice had also brought Harry and Neville along and the two toddlers were really enjoying themselves. Albus Dumbledore had invited some Hogwarts teachers, including Flitwick and Slughorn, who bluntly asked Mary if she was still hopeless at brewing potions. She laughed, determined not to let anyone spoil the elated sphere and merrily replied that as a Healer, her potions were pretty mediocre, but that her ointments were excellent.

Sirius adored her birthday present. "Wow Mare," he said excitedly as he unwrapped the gift that contained the watch. "How did you know I wanted this?"

"Oh, only because you dropped a hint almost every time we passed the shop."

Sirius laughed and hugged her close. "But still, you had to be listening very carefully…"

"Excuse me, you had to be sham deaf to miss that clue. Now put it on. Wow," she said grinning. "It looks great."

"Thanks love," Sirius grinned back before leaning in to kiss and thank her for real.

Mary had already decided she would save the other present until _after_ midnight. As he continued to accept the gifts from other guests, Mary looked around the pub and noticed that Lily and Alice were currently dancing to LTD's Back In Love Again with Harry and Neville on their arm. Mary considered joining them when she realized she hadn't seen Remus in a while. Determined to keep her promise, she started to wander around the crowded pub and look for her friend. She didn't find him anywhere and decided to check outside.

When Mary walked through the front door, she immediately noticed it was a nice November night. The air was cold but dry, which was a relief considering it had been pouring with rain all week. Mary looked around and spotted Zabini and Marlene ahead, who were standing on guard at the moment. When she looked the other way, she saw Remus sitting on the pavement with his back against the wall of the pub. He raised a hand when he saw her approaching him. "Hi."

"Hey," she replied as she carefully lowered herself next to Remus on the ground. "Are you okay? Why are you outside?"

Remus shrugged. "I just felt like being alone."

Mary nodded. "You're thinking about Brice."

He sighed. "Yeah," he said, playing with his shoe laces. "She would have loved a party like this. And well, it's just…"

She could see something was bugging him. "What?"

"I talked to a girl earlier… Elizabeth, a colleague from Lily," Remus clarified at her questioning look. "She was nice and I really liked her, but… Now I feel all guilty. I mean, Brice… It's just so confusing."

Mary knew what he was talking about, but she decided to cheer him up rather than talking him down. "What were you expecting, Remus?"

He frowned at her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you're single and cute as hell. What girl wouldn't fancy hooking up with you?"

A smile broke through his tired expression. "You think I'm cute? Don't let Sirius hear you."

Mary laughed. "Sirius has got nothing to worry about, but Remus, it's not a crime to have some fun. I bet Brice would kick your butt if she knew you were sulking outside instead of partying along with the rest of us."

He smiled sadly. "Quite a different point of view since the funeral, eh Mary?"

She blushed, fidgeting with the sleeves of her dress. "Well yeah, I try."

"Good for you," Remus said sincerely and he threw back his head against the wall. "I miss her."

"So do I."

"It's like… I keep thinking I never told her how I _really_ felt about her, how much she meant to me. And now… Now it's too late."

Mary bit her lip and placed a hand on his arm. "I can't change that, but I think you should know Brice was really happy with you. She once told me that she knew you were everything she wished for her entire life."

He shot her a surprised look. "Really?"

"Yep, she said you were making her the happiest girl on the planet."

"Shame it only lasted this short. I have a feeling I will never love anyone like that again."

Mary looked around as the door of the pub burst open and a boy and girl she recognized from the Ministry of Magic fell out, hugging each other as they walked into the other direction. They left the door of the pub wide open, sending out parts of the song Love Is All from Roger Glover and the Butterfly Ball. After another moment, Mary looked back at Remus who was still watching her. She smiled sadly. "You say that now, but I'm sure that one day, you will find love again."

"How can you be so sure of that?"

"Well, for one: without love, there isn't much else to live for, is there? And two: I dare say Roger Glover strongly disagrees with you."

He listened to the next couplet (_"All we need is love and understanding, ring the bell and let the people know. We're so happy and we're celebrating, come on and let it show. Love is all, love is all…."_) and couldn't help but smile. "Maybe…" he said slowly when his eyes fell on Sirius and Lily, who was carrying a snoozing Harry, walking towards them while they were softly talking to each other. "Are you going home?" Remus asked Lily.

She smiled and looked down at Harry. "He's had enough excitement for one night. I'm going home with him, but James isn't planning on leaving anytime soon. Will you come by soon?" she asked Mary.

Mary nodded. "Hopefully I can pop by during lunch the day after tomorrow, if Pierce'll let me. I'll write you an owl tomorrow, okay?"

"Sure," Lily replied. "You guys have fun, good night!"

She and Harry disapparated with a crack and Sirius crouched down before them. "You guys coming back inside? It's way too cold to stay outside."

Mary nodded and allowed Sirius to carefully pull her back to her feet. Remus crawled up easily on his own and he shot a doubtful look inside before saying: "Look guys…"

"You don't want to come back inside," Sirius said.

"No, I'm sorry… I tried, I really did."

"What's wrong, Moony?" he asked, looking concerned.

"Nothing," Remus replied. "It's just… too soon, you know?"

Sirius nodded slowly and briefly hugged Remus while patting him on the shoulder. "You hang in there."

"Just go back inside. Have fun and don't worry about me too much, okay?"

The last part was directed at Mary, who smiled and hugged him close as well. She kissed him on the cheek. "Take care."

She and Sirius watched Remus disapparate and remained standing there for another moment before he reached for her hand and pulled her along with him, back to the warm and crowded pub. Most people inside were having a good time. Dumbledore was boogying with Alice to a Jackson 5-record, Frank attempted to learn Edgar Bones some impressive dance moves (Frank was by far the best dancer of the Order) and James was watching them with an amused grin on his face, a large goblet of Firewhiskey in his hand.

They joined their friends and the time flew by. Before Mary realized, it was already past midnight. Many people stopped by to congratulate Sirius once more, but they didn't give him any new presents. When that line of people had finally disappeared about thirty minutes later, Mary asked Philip for her bag, which she had placed behind the bar earlier that day. She took out the scarlet envelope and handed the bag back to Philip, who winked and put it back in one of the lower closets.

Mary walked back to the others, holding her hand behind her back, and whispered – but loud enough so he could hear her - into Sirius's ear: "I need to talk to you."

He turned around and wanted to pull her close to him. "Spill."

Mary desperately tried to keep hiding the envelope when she forced a smile. "Alone."

"Oh," Sirius said as he looked for a more quiet spot in the pub. There was a deserted corner on the other side of the pub, right next to the fireplace and a comfortable looking couch. "Over there," he pointed as he started to guide her over to the fireplace. "What's wrong?" he asked, when they were standing in front of the crackling fire.

"Nothing," she said while listening to the Vogues-song Five O'Clock World. "It's just that I have another present for you."

_Up every morning just to keep a job  
I gotta fight my way through the hustling mob  
Sounds of the city pounding in my brain  
While another day goes down the drain_

But it's a five o'clock world when the whistle blows  
No one owns a piece of my time

Sirius lifted his eyebrows. "Another one? But you already gave me that amazing watch."

"Yes," Mary replied, smiling mysteriously. "But I wanted to give you something else, to say… eh thanks for supporting me the way you did after Brice died, even though I acted like a complete fool, and well… Just because I love you."

"Mare," he said, stroking her cheek. "That is very sweet, but you really didn't have to do that. I already know, remember?"

Mary laughed. "Just wait until you see my gift."

_I've been going trying to make my way  
While I live for the end of the day_

Cause it's a five o'clock world when the whistle blows  
No one owns a piece of my time  
And there's a long-haired girl who waits, I know  
To ease my troubled mind, yeah  
Oh my lady, yeah

She handed over the scarlet envelope and Sirius took it, looking flabbergasted. She continued to watch him attentively when he shot his first look at the tickets. His gaze changed from shocked to a stupid grin and finally: a look of complete euphoria. "Two tickets to the Quidditch World Cup Final?" he stammered. "Where did you get those? That tournament has been sold out for months!"

She smiled. "Let's just say I have my connections. You like?"

"Like?" Sirius roared as he lifted her up high in his arms and turned around in circles. "This is incredible!"

He gently put a giggling Mary back on her feet, but continued to hug her as he kissed her fiercely. When they finally broke apart, he stared at her, grinning. "You're coming with me, right?"

She laughed. "To the Quidditch World Cup in Ireland? I would think not. I don't really care about Quidditch. You should ask James instead, or Remus, Peter, Frank or whoever you want to go with."

"Alright," he nodded before his expression became slightly concerned. He frowned. "But wait a second, our baby is due in March, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"The World Cup takes place in February, so that means you'll be eight pregnant by then." He shook his head, making up his mind. "There is no way I'm leaving you on your own at that stage."

_In the shelter of her arms everything's okay  
She talks and the world goes slipping away  
And I know the reason I can still go on  
When every other reason is gone_

Mary stared at him. "What?" she said shrilly. "You're not going to the World Cup?"

Sirius laughed. "Hey now, I didn't say _that_. What I'm saying is that I will be taking you with me and James to Ireland. And Lily and Harry should come along too. It will be just like that holiday in France when she and Alice were about eight months pregnant, remember?"

Mary thought about this for a moment. It _could_ work and after all, there were also wizarding hospitals in Ireland, St. Paddy's in Dublin for example. She looked at Sirius who was still staring at the tickets in utter shock. And if they weren't feeling happy enough already, right on cue, their baby suddenly kicked again. Mary gasped and quickly put Sirius's hand on her tummy. He looked down at her belly. "Hello baby," he murmured in a deep voice.

"I think it's saying happy birthday," she replied, grinning.

Sirius merely smiled and pulled her even closer to him. "Mary Woods, you never stop surprising me," he whispered into her hair and he started to slowdance, oblivious to the actual rhythm of the song, and sang along softly: "In my five o'clock world she waits for me, nothing else matters at all. Because every time my _Mary_ smiles at me, I know that it's all worthwhile, yeah. Oh my lady, yeah…"

As the final notes of Five O'Clock World slowly died away and Philip put on one of their favorite Beatles songs, Sirius continued to slowdance without saying a word. And while they were dancing cheek to cheek in that quiet corner of the pub, the baby continued to kick between them. Mary closed her eyes and, breathing in his scent and aftershave, she could feel the song thud right through her like a heartbeat. She realized this was the second time that day she was feeling supremely happy but now, for the first time ever since Esha Ness, she didn't feel guilty about that one bit.

End of Update

**A/N The City Arms is an actual pub in London near Covent Garden, although I have no idea if the owner is really called Philip, and whether he's a Squib or not, haha! And Five O'Clock World by The Vogues: one of my **_**all time**_** favourite songs. Never heard of it? Shame on you! ;) Go listen and find out, I happen to know you can find a few videos on YouTube.**

**Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by and here's a little teaser of what is coming next:**

"_Sirius…" Mary started hesitantly, but he didn't respond or even look around at her. "I was going to tell you, I really was. After the final, when-"_

"-Do you re_alize," Sirius suddenly started. "How much it hurts every time you keep things from me? Even now, after everything that happened with Brice." He finally looked at her over his shoulder, and what Mary saw in his eyes shocked her even more than she would have thought. She had expected to see anger there, but he wasn't looking angry. On the contrary, his eyes were filled with something much worse: disappointment. "Do you have __any__ idea?"_

She gulped. "Oh sweetie, it was never my intention-"

"-It never is," he interrupted shortly. "How could you?"


	73. The Quidditch World Cup

Chapter Seventy-Three:

**Chapter Seventy-Three:**

November and December went by without many mentionable developments and as 1980 passed into 1981 with no attacks or other disquieting events occurring whatsoever, the Order started to wonder if this meant that Voldemort's advance was finally coming to an end. Mary and Sirius even considered getting back to organizing their wedding, but right when Sirius was about to contact the priest of the chapel in Kent, on a freezing cold January night, a group of Death Eaters broke into Marlene McKinnon's house. They ruthlessly killed her and her entire family, including her husband and four-year-old son.

Needless to say the wedding plans were instantly put on hold once more. The cruel murder on Marlene shocked the Order and they immediately set up an extensive investigation. After a few days, Mad-Eye Moody concluded that Voldemort ordered his Death Eaters to kill everyone who (according to them) could be part of the Order, or anyone else resembling a possible threat to Voldemort and his followers.

Sirius and Mary wondered whether it would still be safe to go to the Quidditch World Cup in February (only a month later), but according to Dumbledore, there wouldn't be a more guarded place in the wizarding world than the final of a World Cup. As for who was invited to come to Ireland with them, Sirius didn't need much time to make up his mind: he thought about choosing Remus, but since the final would take place at full moon, that clearly wasn't an option. Besides, Remus did not care that much about Quidditch (at least not as much as James) anyway.

James was positively thrilled when Sirius told him that thanks to Mary, they were going to the Quidditch Final together. His first prompting was (to Sirius's amusement) to seriously snog her, but in the end he just bought her the biggest chocolate cake he could find. Of course she, Lily and Harry would be going to Ireland as well. The girls made a reservation at a traditional tavern that was located close to the Irish capital and looked out over the Dublin bay.

When they arrived at the inn on a Friday afternoon on the night of the Quidditch Final, they quickly dumped their suitcases in their simple, but cosy and comfortable rooms before heading straight downstairs to the basement, which contained a large underground pool with warm water waiting for them, something they all longed for on such a damp and raw February day.

Lily had to change Harry's nappies before she could join them, but Sirius and James jumped right in and started to mess around, playfully pushing each other underwater. Mary on the other hand carefully lowered herself at the edge of the pool and dangled her feet in the warm water. She was heavily pregnant by now. Her large stomach was preventing her from doing everything she wanted, she was always tired, her neck and back ached and she felt bloated and well, ugly. Mary never thought she would be saying this when she had just gotten pregnant, but by now: she was almost looking forward to the delivery, even though the mere thought of giving birth was still freaking her out.

Mary watched the romp of the guys with a smile on her face, and when James finally surfaced after being pushed underwater by Sirius for a while, holding up his hands and crying: "Truce, please!", she laughed. James looked up and grinned when his eyes dropped to her stomach and widened slightly. "Merlin's Beard Mary, you're huge!"

Her smile slowly faded off her face. Sirius, looking seriously alarmed, nudged James urgently. "Take it back, you take that back," he muttered from the corner of his mouth.

James smiled apologetically at Mary, who did not return his smile. "Look," he said carefully. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just… Normally you're such a slender girl and now… Well, in these last few months you've grown spectacularly and…"

She arched an eyebrow. "You mean I now perfectly resemble a whale that's been washed ashore."

James laughed. "Well, I'm not saying this last period of pregnancy is _all_ that bad. Some body parts grew along with your belly, and I'm pretty sure men appreciate that little development, if you know what I mean…"

Mary's eyebrows travelled even further up her forehead and Sirius, who had been staring at James with an open mouth, finally spoke up. "Prongs, do remind me that when Harry is all grown up, _I_ will be the one who talks to him about girls? Because you my dear friend, are hopeless."

"Who's hopeless?" Lily had just walked into the basement, carrying Harry on her am.

"Your husband," Sirius clarified. "Who basically just compared Mary to a fat cow."

"That's not what I meant!" James retorted quickly, but his wife merely laughed as she handed Harry over to Mary so she could jump into the pool herself. "James always talks before thinking, but I find that adorable."

"Even when he says you're fat?" Mary asked incredously after she had given a loudly cooing Harry a kiss on his head and handed him back to his mother.

Lily grinned. "When I was about eight months pregnant, he used to wonder aloud whether Sauvage had failed to mention I was carrying twins."

Sirius burst out laughing. "No way!"

James flushed. "Eh well, I was just… I mean, that was not _im_possible, right?"

"Even so," Sirius replied, patting James on the shoulder. "I'll be the one teaching little Harry all about girls, agreed?"

"You'll just turn him into a womaniser," Mary observed dryly.

Sirius had started to swim over to the edge where she was sitting. "Ah, but he'll be extremely popular with the ladies."

Mary rolled her eyes. "He'll be stalked and adored by all the ditzy girls at Hogwarts, I'm sure. But the girl he's meant to be with will just hate his guts."

Sirius had finally reached the edge and put his elbows on her knees. He rested his chin on his arms before shooting her a sweet look. "But he conquers her heart in the end and they will live happily ever after."

The wet hair dangling in front of his eyes made him look totally irresistible and Mary couldn't help but smile. "Well, I hope so," she said sincerely.

Sirius smirked. "Are you coming in too?"

She shot him a doubtful look. "I don't know…"

"Come on, the water will just relax your tense body a bit. Don't worry, I'll help you."

Mary slowly let herself slid off the edge and Sirius caught her gently. He pulled her to the middle of the pool before turning around, drifting completely stretched out on his back. He then wrapped both his arms around Mary; her head was resting on his chest while they were floating around on their backs. The warm water was embracing them like a fuzzy blanket and Mary sighed contently as she listened to James and Lily playing with Harry in the background.

She was about to close her eyes and doze off when Sirius's hands unexpectedly shifted from her chest to her belly. A split second too late Mary realized why she had been avoiding being hugged by him over the last few days. She quickly pushed his hands away, but the damage was already done. "Mary," Sirius noted hesitantly. "Your stomach… It's all hard, is that the way it's supposed to be?"

Mary was unable to give him an answer that would be satisfying for both of them that quickly. Sirius got up straight and turned her around so she had to look at him. "What's going on?"

She avoided his gaze and stared down at his chest. "It ehm… is just an indication that the baby could be on its way… eh one of these days."

He crossed his arms and frowned. "One of these days?"

"Like in a week?" Mary admitted.

She finally dared to look up and noticed Sirius had closed his eyes momentarily before looking straight at her. "And how long have you known this?"

She bit her lip. She didn't want to lie, but was well aware the truth would have the same effect. She shot him a guilty look before whispering: "Sauvage established it at my last examination, about four days ago."

The outcome was effective immediately. Sirius's grey eyes turned cold and he shook his head, but didn't say anything. He just pushed himself away from her and crawled to the edge, ignoring James calling him on the way, where he got out of the pool, grabbed his clothes from a chair near the wall and left the basement, still soaking wet.

The door fell shut with a loud bang that resounded through the entire room. Mary cringed when she was staring after him, unsure what to say or even think. She knew she was supposed to inform him about this final stage of her pregnancy. She had been planning to, until she realized Sirius would never go to Ireland if he knew about this. And according to her, this trip was something they all, but especially Sirius, needed so badly. She looked around at James and Lily, who were staring at her. "Look, it's nothing."

"Nothing?" James repeated, his eyebrows raised. "Mary, I've known Padfoot for many years. He doesn't leave like that for nothing."

She sighed. "Look, I eh… I kind of forgot to tell him that since a few days, my tummy has become hard."

"_Forgot?_"

"Okay, I suppressed it," she confessed reluctantly.

Lily shot her an incredulous look. "Mary!" she called. "How could you have kept this from him?"

Mary nervously pulled a hand through her wet hair. Sirius's glare and departure was already making her feel guilty, but her best friend's reproachful look simply made her cringe. "I was trying to protect him, I think. And I was going to tell him soon, honest. But not before tomorrow."

Lily shook her head. "Mare, this is just wrong. You must go and talk to him."

Mary shot her a long look before nodding and hesitantly making her way over to the edge of the pool. Her legs felt like lead, and for once this didn't have anything to do with being pregnant. The pool did not have a stairway to climb out, so Mary had to heave herself onto the edge, but she failed miserably. After three attempts, she swore loudly and let herself fall back into the water.

"Hang on," James said as he gave Harry to Lily and quickly crawled to the edge and got out of the pool. "Give me your hand," he said when he was standing before her.

Mary obeyed and her pulled her out of the pool remarkably easy. "There you go."

"Thanks," she mumbled, already walking to the chair to collect her clothes. She didn't even bother to dry herself off and slid her skirt and shirt on over her bathing suit. She was just heading out of the door when Lily suddenly said: "It'll be fine. Just don't forget to apologize, he deserves a really big one."

Mary shot her a grateful look and nodded. She made her way upstairs as quickly as her round tummy was allowing her. She considered knocking when she was in standing in front of their room, but in the end she just opened the door and walked inside. Sirius was standing in front of the window, leaning against the frame as he was staring out over the bay.

"Sirius…" she started hesitantly, but he didn't respond or even look around at her. "I was going to tell you, I really was. After the final, when-"

"-Do you realize," he suddenly started. "How much it hurts everytime you keep things from me? Even now, after everything that happened with Brice." He looked at her over his shoulder, and what Mary saw in his eyes shocked her more than she would have thought. She expected him to be mad at her, but Sirius wasn't looking angry. On the contrary, his eyes were filled with something much worse: disappointment. "Do you have _any_ idea?"

Mary gulped. "Oh sweetie, it was never my intention-"

"-It never is," he interrupted shortly. "How could you?"

Mary carefully walked over to him, but he just turned away from her and went back to staring over the water. She realized she only had one option: to tell the truth. "I only found out myself a few days ago, and after I'd asked Sauvage how serious this sign is, I reasoned… Well, you would never go to the Quidditch Cup Final if you knew. And after Marlene's death, I… You needed a break, and I wanted to give you that. Please believe me when I say it's been hard for me to keep this a secret, even if it was only supposed to be for a few days."

Sirius pulled a hand through his hair. "But you had no right," he muttered quietly, more to himself than to her.

She reached for his hand and he let her take it reluctantly. "Sirius…"

He finally looked at her. "You do realize this baby is as much mine responsibility as it is yours? The fact that you're carrying it does not not give you the right to exclude me when crucial decisions are to be made."

"You're right. Of course you are…"

"Would I have let us go to Ireland if I had known? No, probably not. You know me well enough when it comes to that. But you should have told me _at once_ and not when it becomes convenient for _you_."

"I only decided to do this when Sauvage had assured me that this process is probably going to take another few days. At least, perhaps even a week."

Sirius sighed and dropped her hand. "You're due in two weeks, right? Does your family have a history of early births?"

She shrugged. "More early births than late ones, but I really think it'll be fine. This baby isn't ready to come out yet, I can feel it."

The littlest of smiles crossed his handsome face as he stared out of the window and Mary conceived this as a sign he was no longer mad at her and thus, wouldn't push her away if she tried to hug him. She hugged his waist from behind and placed her head on his shoulder. She was right; Sirius didn't push her away and placed his hands over hers. "As long as you understand how wrong you are."

Mary nodded, her chin still on his shoulder so he could feel it. "As long as you realize that my intentions were good."

Sirius suddenly chuckled. "Well, we're here now. I might as well go to that bloody Final."

She grinned. "You better, I did not deputize on all those night shifts from Nate for nothing."

Sirius turned around and hugged her so they could stare over the water together. "I still cannot believe you did all that to get us those tickets."

"Well, that's just proof of how much I love you."

Sirius didn't reply, but pulled her even closer. They remained standing here for another moment until Mary got tired of carrying the baby's weight. Her back had also started to ache again, so he carefully guided her over to the couch and conjured a large mug of tea. Since this was a Muggle inn, they had a television in their room. They watched it together, with Sirius occasionally snorting over the silliness of Muggle technology, until evening fell and a soft knock on the door disturbed them. It was James and Lily with Harry. James seemed ready to go to the Quidditch Final; his eyes were twinkling behind his glasses and his hair seemed to be even more feisty than usual, standing up in every direction out of pure excitement. However, before he could have said anything, Lily asked Sirius: "Everything okay again between you guys?"

"Yeah, we worked it out."

"Good to know," James beamed before walking into the room. His eyes fell on Mary, who waved lazily from her comfortable position on the couch and he smiled. "Wow Mary, you're looking absolutely stunning this evening."

Mary could only just keep herself from chucking a pillow at his head and instead just rolled her eyes, but Sirius laughed. "Give it up, Prongs. The damage is already one." He walked over to the couch and crouched down before her. "Are you sure you'll be alright?"

Mary nodded and leaned on her elbows to give him a kiss. "You go watch how England beats Italy and wins that World Cup. If anything happens, which I doubt, but still… Lily will send you an owl or Patronus at once."

"Okay," he nodded, getting back up. "But _if_ England wins, we'll come back here to get you girls and Harry and celebrate our victory the way we should: in a pub with lots and lots of beer, and in your case: lemonade."

Mary snorted. "Can't wait."

Sirius winked and, after he and James had said their goodbyes to Harry, they left the room and headed downstairs. After Lily closed the door and sat down across Mary with Harry on her lap, she said: "More tea?"

"Yes, please."

Lily waved her wand, conjuring fresh mugs of tea, and placed her wand on the table afterwards, making sure Harry wouldn't be able to grab it. "So…" she said. "Sirius really isn't angry anymore?"

"Disappointed, you mean."

"Ouch," she replied, shooting her a sympathetic look.

"Things are okay again now. I just realized it was a mistake to keep all this from him."

Lily shook her head. "I would have been so mad if I were him. Frankly, I _am_ quite upset with you. How could you _not_ have told us?"

Mary explained why she had kept it a secret and Lily sighed. "Well, if Sirius can forgive you…"

"Thanks," she smiled, feeling relieved, but then she suddenly noticed how tired Lily looked. "Lil…" she started cautiously, "is something up?"

Lily looked up from playing with Harry's feisty hair, but Mary aw she was avoiding her eyes. "It's nothing, I'm sure."

"Lily…?"

Lily sighed. "Between us?" she asked, shooting her a questioning look, who nodded. "I've been having trouble to sleep properly. It's these weird dreams I'm having lately. Or dreams… Just one, actually."

Mary sipped her tea thoughtfully. "What kind of dream?"

Lily looked at her for a moment, her brow furrowed as if she was trying to choose her words carefully. "It's always the same thing: James, Harry and I are in this old and distant cottage. We're worried, very troubled. After I've put Harry in bed and we're back down, someone breaks in. That's it, basically, except that everything around us is green. The walls, the floor, the furniture, just everything… And James doesn't even like green! I just… I don't know what this is about."

Mary frowned. "But a cottage? You live in a brand new appartement in the very heart of London."

"I know. Weird, huh?"

"What do you think this means?"

Lily shrugged. "It's the exact same dream over and over again."

"Hang on," Mary said slowly. "Do you think it could be… Like a vision or something? A prophetic dream?"

Lily looked at her, biting on a nail. "What do _you_ think?"

"Ehm… I'm not sure. Are there any Seers in your family?"

Lily rolled her eyes, ignoring Harry who was trying to draw her attention by pulling on a loose string on her shirt. "I'm Muggle-born like you, Mare, so no, I don't think so. At least not in the last generations."

"But a clairvoyant, then?"

"Not as far as I know."

"Well," Mary reasoned. "It could also just be a dream. But the green color… I'm no dream-expert, but I could talk to a colleague of mine when we're back, if you like."

Lily smiled. "That would be great, thanks." She looked at the clock at the wall. "The game has already started by now. Who do you think will win?"

"England, I hope. Can you imagine Sirius and James's mood if Italy wins?"

Lily pulled a face and Harry, who had recently started to occasionally produce parts of words, suddenly said: "Da!" Lily smiled broadly and kissed him on the forehead. "Yes, daddy won't be pleased if we lose. And nor will uncle Sirius." She looked at Mary. "Are you ready to become a mum?"

Mary laughed. "A mum, yes. Surviving that birth… That's a different story."

"Are you still that weary to go into labour?"

She snorted. "I'm crossing my fingers every day that they will suddenly invent another way to get that baby out of my body. Painlessly, I might add. Does that answer your question?"

Lily laughed. "You'll be just fine. Anyway, what are we going to do while we're waiting for the guys to return?"

Mary's gaze shifted to the television and back. "How about watching some old-fashioned television?"

Lily grinned. "I thought you'd never ask!"

They spent the next hours watching movies on tv while they drank more tea and feasted on chocolate chip cookies. Harry was still snoozing (and had been doing that for quite some time) on Lily's chest when the door was finally slammed open and the guys burst in. "How did they-?" Lily started.

"WE WON!" Sirius boomed, causing Harry to wake up. The toddler started to cry at once and Lily tried to soothe him as Mary carefully sat up straight. "Really?"

"No," James replied sarcastically. "They wiped us off the field completely. Of course we won! 370 to 300."

He was wearing the same ridiculous hat as Sirius, a typical British bowler hat in the red and white colors of the English flag. Mary couldn't help but think those hats were looking just like one of Elphias Doge's odd creations, but she didn't have the heart to tease them about it. Meanwhile, James had walked over to Lily and Harry. After he had kissed her fiercely, he picked Harry (still crying) up and rocked his son gently in his arms, softly singing a lullaby. Sirius grinned at Mary. "We're the world champions now!"

She smiled. "I bet now you're really happy you went to see that game after all, huh?"

He chuckled. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't." He clapped in his hands. "You girls ready to go?"

Lily shot him a suspicious look. "Go where?"

"Out! Like we planned earlier tonight, remember?"

"But Harry…" she objected.

"Just one drink, Lil," James chimed in. "That won't hurt him."

Lily still didn't look too convinced, but in the end she gave in and nodded. "Fine, then. But only _one_ drink, nothing more."

"Of course," Sirius said as he picked up Lily's robes from am chair and handed them to her. He looked over at Mary. "What are you waiting for, beautiful?"

"Oh guys, I don't know…"

"Come on now," James persisted. "Our party would not be complete without you."

After another moment of hesitation – she was feeling exhausted after all – Mary sighed and nodded before slowly heaving herself up from the couch. Then something extraordinary happened. There was suddenly a clear and thin liquid slowly dripping down from the inside of her legs. She looked down at her round stomach in shock. The others were still laughing over a joke about Italians James had just told them when they all fell silent as Mary stammered: "Uh-oh."

"What do you mean, uh-oh?" Sirius said, still grinning slightly.

Mary stared at him. "I… I think my water just broke."

End of Update

**A/N Anyone said anything about a cliffie? (hides behind keyboard) Sorry guys, but I'll try to update again as soon as I can. In the meantime I hope you have enoyed reading this chapter and will leave me a review, haha! Thanks anyway. Finally, here's a little something of what you can be expecting next:**

_He had rushed over to her and grabbed her hands. "Are you sure?" he asked anxiously, shooting a worried look at her tummy. When she nodded, now looking positively scared, he had lifted her up into his arms. This was the first time Mary had objected to being carried around; she had repeated her question twice by the time he reached the lobby and bolted outside into the dark and raw Irish night. When he was starting to carry her down the road towards the centre of Dublin, he suddenly heard James calling him from behind: "Oy!"_

Sirius turned around, still holding a (now annoyed) Mary in his arms. "What?" he called back impatiently.

James shot him an amused look. "Are you going to carry Mary all the way to St.Paddy's?"

He couldn't help but giving a nervous snort. "Oh, right."

"Because there are other means of transportation, mate," James grinned.

"Yes," Mary said loudly, still in his arms and looking irrate. "Like Apparation, which I can still do very well on my own!"


	74. Miracles & Wonders

A/N: Alright, before I post this chapter I need to explain something

**A/N: Alright, before I post this chapter I need to explain something. Some of you will love this update and others will hate it. At this point I cannot tell you guys **_**why**_** I'm letting the story roll this way, but trust me when I say that I know **_**exactly**_** what I'm doing and have my reasons for making it happen. **

**So… Just go with the flow and I promise you all that later on you will understand why it had to be this way -Mara**

**Chapter Seventy-Four**

The doors of the obstetrics ward in St.Paddy's Hospital burst open as Sirius carried Mary through them, James (holding Harry) and Lily hot on his heels. Mary had repeatedly tried to convince him she was able to walk and apparate on her own, but he wouldn't let her. The image of what would happen if she accidentally splinched herself while trying to apparate was simply too gruesome to imagine.

If he was perfectly honest, Sirius didn't exactly know how _he_ had gotten here as well. He remembered thinking that Mary was kidding when she said her water broke at first. He even burst out laughing and said: "Good one, Mare. Now, come on, the pubs won't be open all night!" He was already halfway the door when James called him back. Sirius had turned around in the doorway and when he looked at Mary and met her shocked gaze, he finally realized this was not a joke after all.

He had rushed over to her and grabbed her hands. "Are you sure?" he asked anxiously, shooting a worried look at her tummy. When she nodded, now looking positively scared, he had lifted her up into his arms. This was the first time Mary objected to being carried around; she had repeated her question twice by the time he reached the lobby and bolted outside into the dark and raw Irish night. When he was starting to carry her down the road towards the centre of Dublin, he suddenly heard James calling him from behind: "Oy!"

Sirius turned around, still holding a (now annoyed) Mary in his arms. "What?" he called back impatiently.

James shot him an amused look. "Are you going to carry Mary all the way to St.Paddy's?"

Sirius couldn't help but giving a nervous snort. "Oh, right."

"Because there are other means of transportation, mate," James grinned.

"Yes," Mary said loudly, still in his arms and looking irrate. "Like Apparition, which I can still do on my own!"

"No love," Sirius replied, shaking his head. "I'm not going to let you do that. Not tonight."

And before she could have protested in any way, he disapparated; Lily, James (with Harry) following shortly. St.Paddy's was an underground hospital, partly located right under Trinity College. The obstetrics ward looked different from the department in St. Mungo's. There weren't paintings of wizards or laughing babies on the walls. And these walls weren't blue, but a soft green. The waiting room was a lot smaller with several dark green arm chairs instead of the uncomfortable plastic chairs they made you sit on in London.

But the thing Sirius mostly noticed was how deserted the ward was, an entirely different view from the day when Harry was born. The St. Mungo's waiting room had been cramped with pregnant women and their families. Of course Lily had gone into labour in the morning whereas it was now just after midnight, but still… It looked odd. Sirius carried Mary over to the counter, where a couple of Healers and assistants were discussing the aftermath of the World Cup-final. "Good night, I'm Keira O'Reilly. How can I help you?" a pretty-looking assistant Healer with an Irish accent asked politely.

"Hi," Mary said. "I'm due in two weeks, but my water broke and eh… Well, that can only mean one thing, right?"

Keira shot her a puzzled look. "How long ago did you say your water broke?"

"I didn't," Mary replied. "But not too long ago. Half an hour tops, I think."

"And you're already having trouble to stand on your own feet?"

Mary blushed fiercely and hit Sirius on the arm. "I told you so!" she hissed. "Put me down."

Sirius carefully lowered her to the floor before shooting Keira an apologetic look. "I was only being extra careful is all," he muttered, feeling embarassed.

"There's nothing wrong with that. You can never be too careful in my opinion," she replied and winked at him.

It was a wink Sirius normally would have conceived as flirtatious but given the current situation, he chose to ignore it. "What will happen now?"

Keira smiled and looked at Mary. "Well, in a minute I will take you to a room, so you can lie down if you want to and then I will get Healer Donnelly, who's on call tonight. Unless you have an Obstetrics Healer back in England?"

Mary nodded and Sirius said: "Would it be a problem if we asked her to come here?"

"The Healer, your families, friends…," Keira nodded and Lily stepped up to place a hand on Sirius's arm. "I can go and alert Sauvage and the others if you want."

He shot her a grateful look. "Thanks. Don't forget to drop by her parents as well, okay?"

Lily nodded and pulled Mary in a close embrace. "You're gonna sail through, sweetie."

Mary smiled back weakly as she watched how Lily kissed James and Harry goodnight and disapparated with a pop. James walked over to Mary a moment later and kissed her softly on the forehead, wishing her good luck before announcing he and Harry were going to get him a cup of coffee.

Sirius didn't need any coffee at the moment. He was already bouncing around with adrenaline as it was as he witnessed how Keira was scribbling down Mary's personal facts and the course of her pregnancy. She looked up from the clipboard. "And you're the husband?"

"Fiance," he replied, rocking back and forth on his feet.

"Alright," Keira nodded, adding that info to her clipboard. At last, she picked it up and ushered them to follow her. Sirius had planned to support Mary as much as he could, but she walked (or waggled was more like it) relatively easy. Although she did reach for his hand on the way and he squeezed it gently, pretending to act more confident around her than he was feeling.

After Keira had given Mary an official hospital chemise and helped her get into bed, she used a standard glueing spell to pin the clipboard to the wall next to the door and excused herself, announcing she was going to get Healer Donnelly.

Sirius hesitantly walked over to the edge of the bed. "Do I need to shake up your pillow or are you comfortable enough?"

"I'm alright like this. Just nervous and eh… terrified. Is that silly?"

He stroke her hand with his thumb and shook his head. "My legs are shaking, and I'm not the one who has to give birth. I can only imagine how you must feel…"

"What are you hoping for: boy or girl?"

"I don't know… I've had dreams about me teaching my son how to play Quidditch, but a mini-Mary would be just… divine. I don't know. You?"

She caressed her stomach thoughtfully. "As long as it's healthy," she said at last.

They stared into each other's eyes for a moment, each drowned in their own thoughts, and then Mary suddenly grabbed hold of her belly, frowning. When her face tightened and she groaned softly, biting her lip, Sirius got the impression she was having her first contraction. He was right. After another moment, which seemed to last an eternity, she finally opened her eyes. She took a few deep breaths and said: "Oh my God: ow. Just… _ow_."

Sirius crouched down next to the bed. "What does it feel like?"

"It's a nasty tightening feeling… Like achy muscle cramps in your abdomen, but a lot worse. Godric, it _really_ hurts, Sirius."

"Shhh," he said softly, stroking her hair. "I'm going to be right here with you, every step of the way."

Unfortunately this didn't put her mind at ease much. She shot him an exasperated look and whispered: "I'm not sure I can do this."

"Course you can," he said soothingly. "You've been through a lot worse. Just focus and you'll be fine. _We'll_ be fine."

And they were. Although - if Sirius was truly honest with himself – halfway the birth, he honestly believed Mary was going to either faint or die from sheer exhaustion. Those Healers (Sauvage took over from Donnelly the moment she had arrived in Dublin, although he did stay in the room to assist her) could very well assert it had been a smooth delivery (one straight out of the books, they said), but it had looked anything _but_ easy.

The worst thing was the helpnesless; Sirius had not felt more helpless in his entire life. He wanted to relieve Mary's pain so badly, and yet he couldn't. All he could do was watch, standing right beside her, whispering sweet words in her ear and every now or then: helping her to drink water and wiping her burning forehead with cool cloths. Besides holding her hand, which she had squeezed to complete pulp near the end. Sirius didn't care, on the contrary: he knew Mary was in so much more pain and if he could take away only a fraction of that, it would be worth it.

But Mary did a tremendous job and Sirius had never been more proud of her. From the moment Sauvage allowed her to start pushing, she did not lose her focus for one second. Instead, she seemed to be determined to get that baby out as soon as possible. Nevertheless, the delivery still lasted a good seven hours. It took Mary almost the entire night to give birth to their first child. Finally, at exactly 7.19 in the morning, when the sun had already begun to rise, it was over.

He and Mary were officially the proud parents of a daughter. An adorable and completely healthy baby girl with ten fingers and ten toes and to Sirius's prejudiced eye: the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He was laying stretched out on the bed, holding their delicate baby in his arms with Mary right next to him. She had placed her head on his shoulder and was stroking the baby's tiny head that was being covered by an overlarge soft pink bonnet.

They didn't talk much. Sirius didn't even know he could have talked if he wanted to; it was just impossible to find the words that could express what he was feeling. It was a mix of pride, love and euphoria. He was still having trouble getting used to holding their daughter in his arms; an entire new person he and Mary had created together. When the baby unsubconsciously used her entire hand to enclose just his index finger, Sirius got overwhelmed by a feeling he had never experienced before: he, Mary and this baby were an actual family now and he silently vowed he would do anything in his power to protect them from harm. He realized, now more than ever, they were his responsibility and for some reason: he did no longer doubt whether or not he was capable of being a good father. Sirius tore his gaze away from the baby for a moment to kiss Mary on the forehead.

She looked up at him, beaming, and Sirius spotted the same look of extreme happiness and pride in her eyes. "Happy?" she whispered.

He grinned. "Happy? Love, I'm in heaven."

Mary lifted her herself up to kiss him as a reply. When they broke apart, she said: "What about the name?"

Sirius looked at her. "Well, we've discussed it before. And I seem to remember we agreed on…"

"-Not calling the baby Orion if it was a boy or Walburga if it turned out to be a girl."

He pulled a face, and she giggled. "Okay…" He said. "How about naming her after your mother?"

"_Pat?!_" Mary said, looking horrified. "Are you nuts?"

Sirius laughed. "Alright, so then we won't call her after our parents. But what now?"

"Have you thought of any other names at all?"

"I have," he nodded. "I like Julia, Aurelia, Zoë… Or Amber."

"But our girl has grey eyes like you," Mary replied. She shot a thoughtful look outside the enchanted window, where the sun was slowing ascending the sky, changing the color of the air to a bright orange and pink. The strong wind from last night seemed to have blown away all the clouds, revealing a complete clear sky. There wasn't any wind at all, making this an icecold, but peaceful early morning. "Dawn…" she whispered suddenly.

Sirius, who had momentarily turned his attention back to their snoozing baby, shot her a look. "What?"

"Dawn," Mary repeated softly. "It reflects on the time when she was born. And it's a lovely name too, don't you think?"

He nodded thoughtfully, allowing the name to sink in as he watched Mary placing a hand on the baby's chest. Dawn sounded beautiful, but somehow – and Sirius couldn't explain why – it did not seem to be the perfect name for their daughter. He followed Mary's example and stared out of the window. His eyes lingered on the bright green hills with a farm and some sheep in the distance. Green hills, sheep, Dublin… Against all odds, after all they had been through; their baby girl had been born healthy. And of all places, she had been born here. In Ireland, on the very night England won the Quidditch World Cup. It was perfect timing, the perfect place… And suddenly, it hit him. He looked back. "Mare listen. What about Erin?"

She looked up with interest. "Erin?"

"Yes! Erin means Ireland in Old English. It's a perfect reference to _where_ she was born."

Mary looked down at their little daughter, a smile breaking through her blissfully happy but tired expression. "Wow," she repeated. "It's a lovely name. Erin…"

"Erin Dawn," Sirius corrected.

"Erin Dawn Black," she finished quietly.

He looked at her. "Are you serious?"

"Of course I am."

"But… We're not married yet."

"We will be one day, and I want her to use your name. Besides," she added, grinning mischievously. "It wouldn't hurt to annoy your side of the family a bit. Can you imagine your mum's face when she's standing in front of that tapestry in Grimmauld Place?"

Sirius burst out laughing. "She'll either have a stroke or decide to eat Kreacher for dinner, alive. I don't know what I would like best."

Mary laughed and he looked down at the baby they were now holding together. "Hello," he whispered tenderly when Erin briefly opened her eyes.

"Hey baby-girl," Mary whispered. "Hi Erin."

At that very moment, the baby enclosed her hands around their fingers; one hand on Mary's ring finger and the other on Sirius's little finger, as if she was quietly agreeing to her name. They remained laying still like this for another while, until Mary finally broke the peaceful silence. "Shouldn't you go and inform the others? They'll be dying to find out what happened."

Sirius nodded and handed Erin to Mary. He smiled and kissed them (Mary on the mouth, Erin on her little pink bonnet) before heading to the door. As he was walking down the hallway, he realized it didn't feel like walking at all; it seemed like he was floating on air. He could spot the nervous faces of James, Lily and some other friends who had come down to St. Paddy's when he approached the doors of the ward and glanced through the small window. He considered to keep them waiting a little longer, but all he wanted to do was to boast over his little girl. He pushed the doors open with a flourish and everyone jumped up.

James was the first one to reach him and Sirius immediately noticed that first cup of coffee of the night had not been his last. He was much too hyper for his own good, contrary to Harry, who snoozed on completely undisturbed against James's chest. "And?"

In that one second they looked at each other, Sirius knew his friend (besides Frank, who was standing right behind him) was the only one in the room who knew exactly what he was feeling. They didn't have to say anything; James just embraced him like a brother, with Sirius trying to hug his friend back without crushing Harry at the same time. When James finally let go, he shot him a close look and said: "I know, Padfoot, I know."

Sirius could only grin back foolishly but quickly managed to regain his composure when he looked around at the others. Lily was there, and Frank, Alice and Neville. Remus wasn't present, which made sense considering it had been a full moon last night, and neither was Peter. But Hagrid was, and so was Jenna. Sirius decided he had kept his friends waiting long enough. "It's a girl. We called her Erin," he said, unable to prevent another foolishly happy grin from sliding up his face.

Lily clapped her hands to her face. "Oooh!" she cried out happily before jumping into his arms. "That is wonderful! Erin, what a beautiful name!"

"Thanks Lil," Sirius smiled at her. "We thought so to. And it means-"

"-Ireland," Frank finished for him, nodding. "Nice call, mate."

Sirius could only do as much as shake his friend's hand before he was jumped by Jenna. "How did it go? How's Mary doing? Where's the baby?"

"Easy Jenna!" he laughed. "Mary is doing fine. Would you like to see her and Erin?"

They all nodded excitedly and followed Sirius down the hallway. Meanwhile Lily explained Mary's parents would be taking the first plane they could catch and would be arriving in Dublin shortly. She also said that Zabini, Moody and Edgar Bones couldn't get out of work and that Dumbledore was forced to stay at Hogwarts because Crouch was visiting him there early this morning, but that he sent them his best wishes. And right before they reached the door of Mary's room, Lily told him she had looked everywhere for Peter, but couldn't find him. James had suggested he could be on another date, which was not impossible, but to Sirius, it somehow just seemed unlikely.

However, every inconvenient or troubling thought on Peter was already fading to the background when Sirius knocked on the door. Mary was still watching Erin and she only looked up when she saw him and the others walking inside. This time it was Lily who got to Mary first. The friends hugged each other for a brief moment before Lily looked down at Erin. "May I…?"

"Of course," Mary smiled and she carefully handed the little baby with the pink bonnet in its fuzzy blanket over to her best friend. "Gosh," Lily beamed. "Looks like she has your eyes, Sirius. And Mary's cute little nose, and your face, and Mary's lips. It's like the perfect cocktail of Black and Woods!"

"I know," Sirius grinned proudly while watching how Jenna hugged and congratulated her big sister. She also quickly informed Mary that their parents were on their way. Sirius walked over to them and, as Jenna hurried back to Lily and Alice, who were now admiring little Erin with twinkling eyes, he sat down on the edge of the bed and reached for her hand. "Tired?"

Mary smiled. "Exhausted, but honestly: like I could sleep at all right now."

Sirius laughed and looked at the others, where everyone was taking turns in holding Erin. His smile only increased when Hagrid was keeping that tiny baby in his huge hands, tears shimmering in his dark and beady eyes. It was an adorable sight, especially when Hagrid put his hand in his pocket to pull out a large spotted handkerchief to wipe his face. Alice quickly took Erin from him, so he could finally loudly blow his nose in peace.

After another hour of admiring Erin, Sirius noticed Mary was becoming more tired by the minute, and didn't the doctors say that too much excitement wasn't good for Erin? He explained to the others it would be better to give Mary and the baby some space before her parents would arrive. Their friends respected his decision and left, telling him they would be visiting them soon when they were back home. James, Lily, Harry and Jenna did stay in Dublin, but they took Mary's sister back to their room at the inn, and would pick up Mary's parents from the airport later.

When all the visitors had left the room, Sirius - who was now holding Erin – slowly walked to the window and carefully placed his daughter in the white cot standing next to the bed and she continued to sleep peacefully. Then he crawled onto the bed and pulled Mary closer to him so that they were spooning. "Have I already told you how proud I am?" he murmured in her hair.

He could feel Mary shake her head. "Well, I'm saying it now: I am proud of you."

She reached for his hand; the hand she had squeezed tightly while giving birth, which was now slightly bruised and even looked a bit blue-ish. Mary had noticed it too. "Who did this?" she asked.

Sirius tried not to laugh. "You did."

She looked back over her shoulder and shot him a surprised look. "I did? Oh sweetie, I'm so sorry."

He shrugged. "It's nothing, just my insignificant contribution to the hellish pain you had to endure."

It was her time to shrug. "It was worth it. Could you give me my wand, please?"

Sirius, feeling utterly lazy, used his own wand to Accio Mary's from her robes that were hanging on the back of a chair at the other end of the room. When he had handed the wand to her, she grabbed his bruised hand and tapped it twice. His hand seemed to be circled by a soft and warm yellow light; it briefly tickled his skin before slowly working its way inside. When the light finally diminished, the bruises had disappeared, and so had the pain. "Thanks," he said, admiring his healed hand. "I wish your pain could be dissolved that easily."

"I'm afraid that will take a little more time," Mary smiled. She sighed. "Sirius, I've been thinking. Do you think we should appoint godparents for Erin?"

He thought about this himself, but they had not not discussed it together before. "Well, I always thought you wanted to name Lily godmother, and I suppose it's no surprise I prefer James as her godfather."

"Yes, I thought you might say that," she replied. "But actually… It's Remus I'm thinking about."

"Remus? Why?"

Mary turned to her other side so they could look at each other. "Because he's a responsible, kind and intelligent guy. The kind of person I would like to see take care of Erin, should anything bad happen to us. I know Lily and James will always be there for her, like I will be there for Harry, but... I really feel that Remus could do it."

Sirius understood what Mary was talking about and he agreed to a certain extent. But he also knew Remus would never want to endanger Erin's life, and he would consider his own life to be too dangerous because of what he was. "Mare, I'm not so sure he wants…"

"-We could ask him," Mary persisted. "Please Sirius, let him decide this for himself. I know how he used to feel, but he's changed. Brice's death changed him. And I want him to… I'm sure James and Lil will understand. Please?"

Sirius nodded slowly, and even though he knew with almost one hundred per cent certainty that Remus would not want to become Erin's godfather, he felt that today, he simply could not refuse anything Mary said or suggested. "Alright," he said softly, hugging her a little closer. "We'll ask him."

End of Update

**A/N: Whether you wanted this to happen or not: let me know. Reviews are always more than welcome. Finally a little teaser of what is happening next:**

_When she returned from the kitchen a few minutes later, Sirius was just showing Peter how to hold Erin. His friend looked anything but at ease with the youngest Marauder-baby in his arms. "What if I drop her?" he asked anxiously._

"You'll be fine," Sirius said. "Just make sure you support her head with your free hand."

Peter obeyed, but remained tense and he was sitting up straight, stiff as a board. Mary looked at Sirius and knew he was contemplating if he could possibly order Peter to relax. Erin seemed to notice something was amiss, because she started to move and made a few impatient noises. Mary quickly walked over to Peter, who was looking positively alarmed, and took her daughter from his trembling hands. The baby immediately relaxed in her mother's arms and Mary sat down opposite Peter with Erin on her lap. Peter watched them for a while before smiling weakly. "Me and babies just don't work."

"I'm sure that's not true," Mary replied soothingly.

"_It is. I was having trouble holding Harry too, but I think he's finally relaxing around me."_

"That's probably it," Sirius nodded earnestly. "It takes time getting used to your ugly face. That's how it works with adults. I can imagine it's pretty much the same with babies."


	75. The Godfather

Chapter Seventy-Five

**Chapter Seventy-Five**

The next days flew by much too soon for Sirius and Mary's liking. Soon they would be going back to London where the daily threat of war was a lot more perceptible. Nevertheless, they tried to enjoy these particularly peaceful days to the fullest. James, Lily and Harry had to leave on the day after Erin was born, but they did stay to congratulate Mary's parents early that day.

Mary's mother was in tears the minute she laid eyes on the baby. Tears of happiness, that is. She had a hard time on deciding who she wanted to hug first: her daughter, Sirius or her first grandchild. In the end she tried to do all three at once, turning it into a sweet but slightly uncomfortable group hug. Mary was touched when she witnessed her mother passing Erin on to her father, and saw the look on his face. He seemed to be both lost with himself and blissfully happy at the same time.

But when Mary looked up to smile at Sirius, she saw he was exchanging an amused glance with James. Their friend grinned at Sirius in a way that clearly said "I told you so", making Mary wonder if the guys had been talking about her father behind her back. The Potters had to head back to London a few hours later, because with Sirius now having to take care of Mary and Erin, James was the one to deputize for him at the Auror Office. They left after telling Mary and Sirius that they and Harry would be visiting them again soon when they got back home.

Mrs. Woods tried to give Mary (who was having doubts on whether she was able to take care of a baby) as much advice as possible. Along with Sauvage's guideance and the promise she and Sirius could ask Lily and James anything, she finally started to feel a little more confident about learning how to be a good mother.

Her father brought up the dodgy discussion on the dangers of remaining an Order-member twice. The first time was when he and Sirius were taking a touristic tour around Dublin, but Sirius was weary to answer any of Mr. Woods's worried questions. The second time he brought it up was when he, his wife, Sirius, Mary and Jenna were having dinner in a fancy restaurant close to St. Paddy's on the night before they were taking Erin home.

Contrary to Sirius, Mary did not hesitate to counter her father's arguments, but this time she took the time to explain why it was so important for them to remain part of the Order. She acknowledged it would be dangerous and risky, but that the birth of Erin was another, if not the most important reason to keep fighting against Voldemort. When her dad said that Erin might be growing up without one or any of her parents as a result, Mary nodded, looking grave. She knew all too well that was not an unlikely scenario. But then she looked back up, determined to get her point across once and for all. "But Erin will know why we died and I hope she'll understand. We were just trying to make a world in which she could live a happier life." (!)

Mary looked over at Sirius, who nodded, silently agreeing to what she just said. When she looked back at her father, she noticed he was watching her closely with a look that was a mix of pride and apprehension. But when their eyes met, Mary knew he finally understood. He briefly grasped her hand, too emotional to speak. At the other end of the table, Jenna bit her lip and their mother was blowing her nose loudly. Even Mary had to blink back a few tears.

Thankfully, Sirius managed to slightly break the tense silence that followed. "Of course, chances are that we'll be alright and live happily ever after. Albus has fought this type of war before and he's doing just fine. And as he long as he's with us, I'm sure we've got nothing to worry about."

Mary's thoughts briefly shifted to Brice, who died even though Dumbledore had been watching over them. But she decided this was not the time to talk about that and it turned out to be a lovely evening in the end. They talked a lot about Erin, but Mary's mother also fondly remembered Mary's childhood. To Mary's displeasure, Mrs. Woods told Sirius that as a toddler, her eldest daughter had the dangerous habit of putting anything in reach into her mouth. From pieces of paper to small stones or even sand: nothing was safe for her. Sirius burst out laughing and Mary (blushing madly) muttered something about an eight-year old Jenna accidentally setting one of the stables in the barn on fire by magic.

The next day, the Woods were going home. Sirius offered to take them back to England by Side-Along-Apparition, but they declined politely, saying they preferred to travel by aeroplane. Sirius, Mary and Erin (wrapped in self-heating clothes and a fuzzy blanket to protect her from the raw Irish wind) did accompany them to the airport to say goodbye properly.

Afterwards, they apparated to their home in London. The weather in England, with its cold blue sky and frail sunlight might have been less stormy and Autumn-like compared to Ireland, but the atmosphere of coming home to the centre of the war did not feel any less ominous. It got even worse when Sirius went through the mail and – despite looking at old Daily Prophpets headlines on what He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was up to - found a letter from his mother (no doubt a death threat directed at him, Mary _and_ Erin). He hardly paid attention to the letter and merely cast it into the fireplace, unopened, where it waited to be burnt the next time they would build a fire.

Despite the ominous signs of the war, Mary was determined to preserve their little bubble of fluffy happiness. However, one the first things Mary and Sirius discovered was that a good night's sleep had become something of the past. Little Erin turned out to be quite the night reveller. In fact, she was calm and sleepy during the day, but active and extremely restless at night.

And that was a bit of a problem. Mary didn't have to go to work for another two months, because she was on maternity leave. But Sirius only got one week off work. When that week came to an end, he got back to working full-time, especially since all Aurors had recently been ordered by Crouch to be on guard at all times. This meant that Sirius was working long and hard at the Office, came home late feeling exhausted, but then couldn't get the rest he needed so badly because Erin was crying throughout the night.

On Saturday morning, Mary slowly opened her eyes. She blinked a few times, listening closely if she had woken up by Erin's next crying fit. When this wasn't the case, she carefully leaned up on her elbows to check the time on Sirius's watch. 9.12 AM. That sure explained a lot. Erin had the tendency of honoring her second name by finally falling asleep around dawn. Mary looked at Sirius, who appeared to be unconscious. She couldn't blame him. Matthews had kept him and James at the Office until after midnight. When Sirius finally got home, he gave Mary a brief kiss, telling her he had to get some sleep at once, but not before checking on their daughter, who – despite her nightly activities – could not do anything wrong with him.

Mary reached out and stroke a stray lock of hair from Sirius's face. There were dark shadows under his eyes and his breathing was steady and deep, revealing that his tired body was taking every chance it got to repose. Mary on the other hand was not feeling all that tired. Sure, she could do with an undisturbed night of sleep herself, but there was enough time for her to relax throughout the day. Realizing she would not be falling back to sleep anyway, she decided to check on Erin.

Mary carefully crawled over Sirius to get out of bed. She tiptoed to Erin's room and opened the door. She couldn't help but smile at the sight of her daughter, who – like Sirius – continued to sleep undisturbed in her small white cot. Mary lingered to give Erin several soft kisses on the forehead before she finally walked over to the bathroom to take a shower.

When she returned to the bedroom about twenty minutes later, she noticed Sirius had kicked off the blankets and turned onto his stomach in his sleep. Mary took off the towel she had twisted around her head and her long hair fell over her back. She pulled on a hipster, a bra and was just putting on a red tanktop when Sirius suddenly stirred. "Hey," he grunted hoarsely.

Mary smiled at him as she reached for her hairbrush on the nightstand. "Good morning."

"I'm not sure yet if it's a _good_ morning," he replied, rubbing his eyes. "What's the time?"

"A quarter to ten."

Sirius groaned and buried his head under the pillow. Mary sat down on the edge of the bed and ruffled his hair. "No one is forcing you to get up, Sirius."

"No, but I want to," he answered as he turned on his back and stretched. His eyes ran up and down her body and Mary got the sense he was screening her. "Did you lose weight?"

She put a lock of hair behind her ear. "I guess so. My mum already said this might happen. She slimmed down remarkably fast after having me and Jenna."

Sirius looked sceptical. "But you gave birth only two weeks ago. Are you sure you're eating properly?"

"Of course I am. I have a baby girl to feed," Mary said. She swung her leg over his other side so she was sitting on top of him and put her head on his chest. "I just inherited my mum's fast metabolism, that's all," she mumbled.

He was lightly stroking her back with his fingertips. "But _this_ fast?"

Mary shrugged. "It was the same way with Lily after she had Harry." She shot him an amused look. "And as if you mind that I'm getting my old figure back."

Sirius laughed. "Nah, not really. Although..." he joked and grabbed one of her already decreasing love handles. "I always say: the more Mary, the better."

Mary looked seriously affronted which made Sirius laugh even harder. Fearing that it would wake Erin up after all, she stifled his barklike laugh with a passionate kiss. Tired as he was, Sirius responded to it eagerly. He deepened their kiss, ran a hand through her hair and pulled her even closer to him. But right when he was pulling the blankets over them, the sound of crying came from Erin's bedroom. Sirius and Mary stopped kissing and he dropped his head back to the pillow. "Quite the mood-killer too, our little girl," he muttered darkly.

Mary, still sitting on top of him, laughed. She bent over him once more to tenderly kiss his nose and whisper: "I'll go."

She crawled off the bed for the second time that morning and headed over to Erin's room. After Mary had soothed her daughter by walking up and down the room for a few minutes until the baby fell asleep, she carefully placed her back into her cot. Mary returned to their own bedroom, but noticed Sirius had gone back to being fast asleep as well. She couldn't help but smile, pulled on a pair of jeans and a warm sweater and headed downstairs to make some breakfast.

Sirius did not come down for another few hours. It was already past noon when he finally showed up in the kitchen where Mary was preparing dinner. Remus would be coming over in a few hours. He would be seeing Erin for the first time, and considering Mary and Sirius were planning to talk to him about being a godfather to their daughter, she wanted to at least give him a proper dinner in advance. So she was currently trying to make roast duck, a famous Woods-recipe. But she had never prepared this dish before and although she intended to follow her mother's (Muggle) recipy, she realized she'd probably had to use magic sooner or later. Mary looked up when Sirius was walking in, his hair still wet from the shower. "You let me sleep," he said, half-accusingly, half-grateful.

Mary turned her attention back to her cookbook. "You needed it," she said simply.

Sirius transported two slices of bread to the toaster with his wand and poured himself a glass of milk before saying: "Erin is still asleep too. As was to be expected, I suppose," he added with a shrug. "It is daytime after all."

"I changed her nappies and fed her at noon, so she'll probably won't wake up for another few hours. Did Peter say what time he was coming?"

"Three o'clock if I remember correctly. He won't be staying over for dinner, though. Other plans..."

Mary looked interested. "Other plans? Like what?"

He chuckled. "James suspects he's dating someone new."

"And you don't?"

"And you _do_? Have you looked at Wormtail lately? He looks unhealthy, tense and sometimes downright miserable. I thought being in love was supposed to make you glow with happiness."

Mary frowned. "Maybe you should talk to Peter. Find out what is bothering him…"

Sirius neatly caught the toast that was flying out of the toaster. "I already told you Wormtail doesn't like to talk about himself, let alone girls. I'll be there for him if he wants help or advice, but he needs to come to me first." He wrapped his arms around Mary's waist and rested his head on her shoulder when he noticed the cookbook on the sink. "Roast duck?"

She nodded. "I want to impress Remus a bit before I'll drop the bomb, if you get what I'm saying."

Sirius snorted. "Bribe him, you mean."

She rolled her eyes. "It's not like that! Besides, this is a complicated recepy and I'm not that talented when it comes to cooking."

"Your cooking is fine."

"Not as good as my mum's."

After a thoughtful moment, Sirius nodded. "I cannot deny that. Your mother cooks almost as good as the House-elves at Hogwarts, but I happen to know that Moony is not a picky eater, so don't worry."

"I just…" Mary hesitated. "I hope he wants to be Erin's godfather." She shot a doubtful look at Sirius over her shoulder. "Do you really think he'll interpret an extensive dinner as bribery?"

"No, of course not!" Sirius said quickly, washing down his toast with the glass of milk. He kissed her cheek. "It's sweet that you're doing this. I'm gonna check on Erin again," he said, already walking out of the kitchen, leaving a confused Mary behind.

She looked down at the piece of duck in front of her and sighed. Would Remus really didn't take it as bribery if she served him a fancy dinner before asking if he would become Erin's godfather – and legal guardian – should something bad happen to her and Sirius? After another moment of considering to order pizza instead, she decided it would be a waste to throw the duck away and got back to cooking after all.

It took Mary another three hours (and quite a bit of magic) to do it right and prepare the duck according to the recepy. She finally placed the dish in the oven around three o'clock, right before Peter arrived.

Mary opened the door while Sirius was going upstairs to get Erin. The second Mary saw Peter, she knew Sirius was right. Peter didn't look good at all. He'd never been particularly good-looking, but his eyes that used to sparkle had turned dull and watery. He tried to hide his true feelings behind a big smile, though. He congratulated her with a hug and when they made their way over to the living room, he handed her a gift for Erin which turned out to be a teddybear. Mary thanked him with a kiss on his cheek and said she was fetching them some butterbeers. When she returned from the kitchen a few minutes later, Sirius was just showing Peter how to hold Erin. His friend looked anything but at ease with the youngest Marauder-baby in his arms. "What if I drop her?" he asked anxiously.

"You'll be fine," Sirius smiled. "Just make sure you support her head with your free hand."

Peter obeyed, but he remained tense and was sitting up straight, stiff as a board. Mary looked at Sirius and knew he was currently contemplating if he could possibly order Peter to relax a bit. Erin seemed to notice something was amiss as well, because she had started to move and made a few impatient noises. Mary walked over to Peter, who was now looking positively alarmed, and took Erin from his trembling hands. The baby immediately relaxed in her mother's arms and Mary sat down opposite Peter. Peter watched them for a while before he smiled weakly. "Me and babies just don't work."

"I'm sure that's not true," Mary replied soothingly.

"It is. I was having trouble holding Harry too, but I think he's finally relaxing around me."

"That's probably it," Sirius nodded earnestly. "It takes time getting used to your ugly face. That's how it works with adults. I can imagine it's pretty much the same with babies."

Mary looked shocked. "Sirius!"

But Peter appreciated the joke. He burst out laughing and Sirius grinned, but she still didn't understand what was so funny about that insult. Nevertheless, the guys continued to talk animatedly about Quidditch (Peter wanted to hear everything about the World Cup Final) and Mary cuddled with Erin. An hour later, the doorbell rang again. This time it was Sirius who answered and he and Remus walked into the room a few minutes later. Mary noticed their friend looked a lot better than the last time she saw him. The biggest change was that he was smiling. She walked over to them and gave Erin to Sirius so she could properly greet Remus. "Hi Mary," he grinned and pulled her into a big hug.

Mary hugged him back. "I'm so glad to see you," she smiled. "You look good."

"Likewise. I have brought something for little Erin." He lifted up a large bag of presents.

"That's great, Moony," Sirius said. "We'll unwrap those later. Would you like to hold Erin first?"

"I'd love to," Remus replied with twinkling eyes.

Sirius handed Erin over to him and unlike Peter, Remus seemed completely at ease with holding the baby in his arms. Mary exchanged a happy glance with Sirius, and she realized she felt relieved that they were considering Remus to be the godfather, and not Peter. Remus sat down on the couch, unable to keep his eyes from Erin, who had already grabbed the collar of his sweater with one of her chubby hands. Sirius laughed. "She does that all the time," he explained. "She likes to hold on to something, I dunno… With us it's our sweaters, with Mary and Lily their hair."

"That's just because we have long hair," Mary noted.

"I don't mind, it's cute," Remus said, still smiling before looking up at Sirius. "She has your eyes."

"I know," Sirius beamed proudly.

"And your nose and mouth," he continued, shooting Mary a look. Remus snorted. "Forgive me for saying this, Padfoot, but this girl will be a downright hottie when she goes to Hogwarts."

Sirius's smile faded rapidly. "Hey!"

But Remus's grin only increased. "I'm just telling you how it is, mate."

"I'm not troubled, though, because Harry will be watching over her," Mary said serenely when she noticed Peter was getting up from his chair. "Are you leaving?"

"Um yeah, I'm running late," he muttered, looking over at Sirius and Remus. "Have fun tonight and I'll talk to you guys soon. I'm sorry I can't stay over for dinner," he added, shooting Mary an apologetic look.

She shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Come on, I'll walk you out."

They walked to the front door together. When Peter was pulling on his robes, Mary once again noticed how nervous and twitchy he was feeling. She was about to open the door when, after another moment of hesitation, she hesitantly asked: "Is something wrong, Pete?"

Peter looked like he had been struck by lightening. He blushed intently for a few seconds before turning very pale. "N-no," he stammered. "Why do you ask?"

He avoided her eyes and with a feeling of apprehension, Mary realized he was lying to her. "Because you look really troubled," she replied, trying to sound as straightforward as possible.

"Well, of course I'm troubled!" he countered. "It's war and we're all in grave danger."

"Yes, but we've been at war for the last few years and yet now you look like something is really bothering you."

Peter hesitated. He was still not looking at her. After another moment when he was focusing on pulling a loose string from his robes, he finally muttered: "Mad-Eye Moody is suspecting me."

Mary's jaw dropped. "What?"

Peter finally dared to look up and she noticed he was no longer looking troubled, but downright afraid. "He thinks I'm the spy."

"But…" she stammered. "But why would he suspect you?"

"How the hell should I know! He's been tracking me lately, I've noticed. And at the last Order-meeting he... he said "he was going to keep an eye on me"."

"Peter," Mary said, smiling now. "He probably meant he was going to protect you."

Her friend vehemently shook his head. "No, that's certainly _not_ what he meant. Mary, I swear… I'm not the spy. But what if Moody arrests me? W-what if he sends me to Azkaban?"

"They don't send you off to Azkaban for nothing!" she said kindly. "Just… Ask Moody to clarify what he meant. You'll see he was just trying to be nice. I know he can be quite intimidating, but he's a good man. Oh, and you should talk to the guys too, because they've noticed you're acting a bit strange. James actually thinks you're in love."

Peter looked aghast. "Me? Is he _insane_? I don't have time for that… that stuff. But alright, I'll talk to them. Thanks for eh… Well, you know."

"Yeah, I know." she smiled before giving him a hug. "Take care."

After she had watched him step outside and disapparate with a crack, Mary headed back to the living room. Sirius and Remus were still fawning over Erin, but the first looked up when she entered the room. "Remus was just saying the lovely smells from the kitchen are making him hungry. By the way, what took you so long?"

"Peter," Mary replied absent-mindedly, still thinking about Moody "keeping an eye" on their friend.

"Is he okay?" Remus asked.

"Yeah, I think so," she said, deciding they would hear the true story sooner or later from Peter. "One thing, though: he's definitely _not_ in love."

She winked at the guys and made her way over to the kitchen to finish preparing the duck, which turned out to be just fine. It was not perfect, but with the haricots verts and roast potatoes, it tasted very good. At least the guys were not complaining and clearly enjoying their food. When Mary had directed the dirty plates to the kitchen with her wand and brought back bowls of fresh fruit salad and icecream, Remus couldn't help but smile. "Wow, this is almost too much. You're pampering me, Mary. Is there something you want from me?"

"No," she replied a little too quickly, shooting a nervous glance at Sirius.

Remus's eyes shifted from Mary – fidgeting with her engagement ring – to Sirius, who was spooning down his fruit and icecream without even tasting it. He put his spoon back down. "You _do_ want something from me."

Mary glanced over at Erin's cot at the other end of the room before sitting down next to Sirius. "Well, it's not like we _need_ something from you, but eh… We did wanted to ask you if…"

She really didn't want to be the one to finish that question and squeezed Sirius's hand. He shot her a look before finally addressing Remus, who was now looking sincerely puzzled. "Remus, it's like this. Mary and I have been thinking long and hard about who to appoint… I mean, who should take care of Erin should… should anything happen to us. And eh, after long consideration, we thought of... well, you."

Remus's brow was furrowing more with every word, and even Mary felt that Sirius should have been more clear on what this was all about. She decided to step in. "We invited you over because we wanted to see you, of course. But also, and it would mean so much to us if you did, to ask…" She took a deep breath. "Would you like to become Erin's godfather?"

End of Update

**A/N (!) I know that line must sound oddly familiar to everyone who has read DH. This line in the book means so much to me, because it not only relates to Lupin and Tonks's sacrifice to Teddy, but also to what James and Lily did for Harry and what everyone else sacrificed in the fight against Voldemort. That line brought more tears to my eyes than reading how Snape or Fred Weasley died and I **_**had**_** to borrow it from JK for this story, since it's also reflecting on Sirius and Mary's efforts to protect their friends and daughter. I hope you guys understand.**

**Also, sorry for this dreadful cliffie! (runs away before anyone can attack her, but not before leaving a little teaser behind):**

_Mary shrugged moodily, feeling more worried about him going to Oxford by the minute. She was having a really bad feeling about this and the last time she had felt this way, Brice died. Sirius noticed her worried frown and hugged her close. "It'll be fine," he said before turning his attention to Erin. "Will you take care of mummy while daddy is out saving people's lives?"_

Erin grabbed the collar of his robes and gave a small burp as a reply. Sirius adapted a mock stern glare. "Young lady, this is not something to make fun of."

The baby made a sort of chuckling sound instead and Sirius bent down to kiss her little nose. Mary smiled when he looked back up and placed a hand on his cheek. "Just watch your back," she whispered.

"I'm an Auror, Mare. Watching my own and other people's backs is what I do for a living."

_"Please," she said worriedly. "Promise me."_


	76. Battle at Magdalen

Chapter Seventy-Six

**Chapter Seventy-Six**

Remus was staring at her as if she had asked him to go and dance around naked on their roof terrace. "What?"

Mary smiled encouragingly. "I know this comes as a big surprise, but honestly, it would mean _so much_ to Sirius and me if you would…"

He continued to stare at her like he wasn't believing his ears. "But… Surely you must be joking."

Her smile faltered. "Why would I joke over something like that?"

"Because," Remus said, leaning in a little closer. "The _real_ joke would be if you were actually serious."

Mary seemed to be lost for words. She wondered if her eyes and ears were deceiving her and that Remus had not just refused to become Erin's godfather, something she had thought to be a blessing, not a curse. She looked around at Sirius, but he was staring intently at the portrait on the wall of her, Lily and Brice in France, apparently determined to stay out of this discussion as long as possible. Slowly, she turned her gaze back to Remus, who was still watching her. He did not look angry, just sad and perhaps a little awkward. "Well," she said a little defensively. "Sorry. I am – apparently - retarded, but no, I was not joking."

"Mary…" Remus said softly and he put his hand over hers. Mary could sense that Sirius's eyes were now focused on those entwined hands, but she decided to ignore her boyfriend's jealous glare and looked at Remus, who was smiling apologetically now. "I'm honoured, I really am. And Erin means a lot to me, but it cannot be."

Something seemed to snap deep down inside. "And why not?!" she cried.

Remus stared at her. "Isn't that obvious?"

"No!" Mary refuted. "I think you couldn't be more perfect for Erin." She started counting on her fingers. "You're a wonderful guy who's caring, great with children, you're intelligent, responsible-"

"-A werewolf," he finished for her.

Mary was vehemently shaking her head, refusing to believe that this was his reason to turn down their offer but Sirius, who hadn't said anything at all until this point, sighed. "Yeah, I thought you might say that."

Remus shrugged and Mary glared at Sirius. "You knew this would happen?"

"I dare say I know Moony like the back of my hand, yes."

"And you agree?"

"No, I don't," Sirius said, looking over at Remus. "Mate, you know how Mary and I feel about your condition. Newsflash: we don't care, so do us both a favour and get over that little furry problem of yours."

"But I'm a _werewolf_, Sirius."

Sirius heaved an impatient sigh. "Do you need me to spell it out for you? We. Don't. Care."

"You maybe, but the rest of the wizarding world…"

"Look," Mary said placidly. "It's not like you're automatically responsible for Erin's upbringing when you become her godfather. I'm quite sure Sirius and I are perfectly capable of doing that ourselves."

She had meant this to be funny, but neither Sirius nor Remus laughed. "There is a reasonable chance it will turn out that way," the latter muttered.

Sirius opened his mouth to object, but Remus held up his hand. "Don't deny it. I've seen it happening to Brice and you, Mary, only just escaped death. Both of you could die. And then what?"

"It's not like you won't get help from the others," she said. "During your eh… time of the month, you could let James and Lily or one of the others take care of Erin."

Remus sighed and massaged his temples. "Let's just, for a moment, think of the darkest scenario possible. Besides the fact I'm poor… What if you guys die, James and Lily die, Peter dies, Frank and Alice die… Who will I turn to for help then? No one but you guys and the rest of the Order would want to help me out. Help a werewolf out," he added as an afterthought.

At that moment, Erin started to kick around in her cot, as if she was begging to have her say in this matter too. A reticent Sirius left the table and went to the back of the room to check on the baby. Mary was still watching Remus. "So that's it, then. You're not going to do it."

Sirius sat back down with a remarkably awake Erin on his lap and Remus shot the baby girl a softened look. "Not because I don't want to," he said quietly. My life would just be too dangerous, too unpreditictable…"

Mary was staring at her melting icecream and fruit. She had lost all her appetite and was about to empty the bowl with her wand when Sirius spoke up. "Of course, there is another possibility."

Remus arched his eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

Sirius smiled down at Erin, who had once again used her entire hand to grab just his little finger. "We name Lily godmother for Erin. That way she won't entirely be your responsibility."

Mary looked at him, thinking that didn't sound bad at all. But she was already reasoning that this suggestion, considering the current death rate in the Order, would not change Remus's mind. However, to her astonishment, she heard him say: "You know, that might work…"

She looked up at him in surprise, but Remus was looking at Sirius. They were both grinning. "Of course," Sirius noted. "Should your worst case scenario come true, it won't be any easier, because Lily will be dead."

Remus shrugged. "It's the most dark scenario after all. What do you think?" he said, looking over at Mary. "Would you mind if it will be a combined guardianship instead?"

But Mary had already jumped up from her chair. "Mind?" she sqealed happily as she threw herself in Remus's arms. "I couldn't be happier!"

"Alright, alright," he laughed, patting her on her back. "Lily still has to say yes, you know."

Sirius also laughed and got up from his chair. "Like she will say no. She's already dreaming of organizing Harry and Erin's wedding one day."

Mary snorted. "She is not!"

"Is," he replied, his grey eyes twinkling. "She told me on the day Erin was born."

She shook her head, laughing. She had to admit the idea of Harry and Erin getting married some day in the future was a tempting thought to some extent. But she also felt that marrying out your children was a tradition that belonged to the Middle Ages, not 1981. She looked at Sirius. "And what do you think?"

"Rather Harry than some random bloke," he shrugged. "Anyway, this calls for a celebration, don't you think?" He handed Erin over to Remus, who seemed happy to be holding her in his arms again. Sirius used his wand to Accio a bottle of champagne and three glasses from the kitchen. When he had filled the glasses, they held them up in the air and Sirius solemnly stated: "To Remus Lupin, the best godfather Erin Black could possibly wish for."

"Hear, hear!" Mary called and Remus was grinning when he looked down. "Wanna share?" he asked Erin, but she just continued to watch him with her curious grey eyes. "Here's to you, then," he said softly before downing the glass of champagne in one go.

Sirius had put an arm around Mary and she snuggled in a little closer, placing her head on his shoulder as they watched Remus shaking hands (or finger to hand, actually) with Erin. Mary had not seen him this happy since Brice's death. Sirius kissed her hair and when she looked up, he winked at her before his gaze dropped to her abandoned bowl of melted icecream and fruit on the tabl. He eyed the dessert hungrily. "Hey, are you going to finish that?"

Lily was more than thrilled to become Erin's godmother. When Sirius, Mary and Remus dropped by the Potter's apartment the next day, she was pleased to find out the reason for their unexpected visit and said yes before Mary had even finished the question. James was also happy for them and didn't mind that Sirius and Mary had chosen Remus over him, although he did say he would really like to be the godfather of the next Sirius or Mary jr.

March went and April came. The Spring of 1981 was remarkably sunny, a large contrast to current developments in the wizarding world. It looked like Voldemort and his Death Eaters were still becoming more powerful and influential every day, and sometimes Mary felt the Order was fighting a lost battle. Something as ordinary as walking outside on a sunny day had become a dangerous and life-gambling act, considering more people (mostly Muggle-borns and half-bloods) were kidnapped or killed for no apparent reason than ever before.

Remarkably enough, the Order didn't have have to deal with any losses for a long time. But on a sweltering night early in June, it seemed their luck had finally run out. Edgar Bones, the Healer-In-Charge at the St. Mungo's Ward of Creature-Induced Injuries and one of the older and more experience Order-members, vanished without a trace. Later the Order learned that Edgar had been captured by Death Eaters. They tortured him for information on other Order-members and killed him when he refused to give in. What Edgar did or could not have foreseen, was that the Death Eaters tracked down his entire family afterwards and killed them as well, probably as an act of revenge or warning to the rest of the Order.

It was difficult for Mary to deal with Edgar's death. Besides a good friend, he had been a senior Healer to her, someone she could always ask for help or advice (in- and outside St. Mungo's) when she was having doubts on how to treat patients or victims from attacks. With him gone, she was now the only Healer left in the Order and this made her feel oddly responsible. She was a fully qualified Spell Damage-Healer, but for some reason, she still felt like a downright rookie next to Moody, Zabini and Dumbledore.

And as if all the disappearings and killings weren't bad enough, Dumbledore and Zabini had reason to believe that Voldemort was up to something even more disturbing. An anonomynous source had informed them of Voldemort's plans to force talented or famous people in joining his side of the fence. These wizards and witches were kidnapped by Death Eaters and brought to a secret place where Voldemort made them an offer. If they dared to decline or tried to escape, the Death Eaters would snap their wands in two before killing them or convicting them to a far worse fate: the Dementor's Kiss.

Halfway June, Dumbledore discovered that Voldemort was using Oxford University for his "job interviews". Considering he changed to a different location at least once a week, Dumbledore set up a mission at once. He, Hagrid, Moody, Zabini, Frank, Alice, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter were going to Oxford the following night to fight the Death Eaters and set free as much prisoners as possible. Lily and Mary were ordered to stay at home and take care of Harry, Neville and Erin. They had invited both Mary and Lily's mother. Lily's father had passed away in May, and Lilt thought babysitting would cheer up her mum slightly.

On the afternoon of the mission, Sirius was just getting ready to leave when Mary leaned against the door of the kitchen. She had just fed and changed Erin and was holding their daughter in her arms. "Hey."

Sirius looked up from studying a map of Oxford on the kitchen table. "Hi," he smiled.

"Will you be careful?"

"Of course I will."

"Good." she sighed. "I still don't see why Lily and I have to stay here, though."

"You know why," Sirius replied, turning his attention back to the map. "One of the baby's parents should stay home."

"But Alice-"

"Alice is an experienced Auror," he said dismissively. "Besides, if things do go wrong out there, we'll summon you after all. But only as a last resort…"

Mary shrugged moodily, feeling more worried about Sirius going to Oxford by the minute. She was having a really bad feeling about this and the last time she felt this way, Brice died. Sirius noticed her worried frown and hugged her close. "It'll be alright," he said before turning his attention to Erin. "Will you take care of mummy while daddy is out saving people's lives?"

Erin grabbed the collar of his robes and gave a small burp as a reply. Sirius adapted a mock stern glare. "Young lady, this is not something to make fun of."

The baby made a sort of chuckling sound instead and Sirius bent down to kiss her little nose. Mary smiled at him when he looked back up and placed a hand on his cheek. "Just watch your back," she whispered.

"I'm an Auror, Mare. Watching my own and other people's backs is what I do for a living."

"Please," she said worriedly. "Promise me."

Sirius kissed the palm of her hand. "I promise," he replied calmly and gave her a long kiss. "I expect to be home late tonight," he said when they finally broke apart. "So don't wait up."

He pulled on his robes and stuffed his wand and the map of Oxford inside his robes before disapparating with a soft pop, leaving Mary behind in their kitchen. She couldn't help but wonder anxiously if this had been the last time she saw him alive. Thankfully, Mrs. Woods arrived only a few minutes later to take her mind off things. And when Lily and her mother walked inside with Harry and Neville in their arms, Mary slowly began to believe it would be alright, especially when Lily said James had told her that their team was well-prepared this time and that the anononymous source would be around to help out. This made Mary feel much better, although there was still that terse little voice in the back of her mind that couldn't stop wondering who Dumbledore's secret source was.

And for a long time, it looked like James's prediction was coming true. Mary and Lily and their mothers actually had a really good time. Mrs. Woods and Mrs. Evans had always liked each other and they were clearly in their element when they could give their daughters baby-advice. When the little ones were asleep (even Erin, who was finally learning that humans are supposed to sleep at night and not during the day), they talked about Lily's father, how he had died (heart failure) and how much he had loved Harry.

Mary was just realizing she hadn't thought about Oxford for an entire hour when something large and silvery floated into the room and slowly took form. Mrs. Woods choked on her wine and Mrs. Evans screamed, but Mary and Lily could still see how a large killer whale Patronus was materializing in front of the fireplace. The Patronus's mouth opened and Zabini's voice resounded through the room. _"Voldemort knows. Outnumbered by twenty Death Eaters, at least. Please send help."_

After having exchanged one terrified look with Lily, Mary jumped up from her arm chair and stormed to the hall stand to get their robes and wands. When she returned to the living room, Lily was just asking their mothers to watch over the babies. "You can't go!" her mother cried.

But Lily was already stuffing her wand her wand inside her robes. "I have to," she said gravely.

"B-But that voice…" Mary's mother said. "You cannot go, obviously. It could be dangerous."

"Thanks for stating the obvious, mum," Mary replied, a little impatient with their ignorance. "Look," she added more kindly. "Sirius and James are out there too. They could be in mortal danger. We _have_ got to go. Please, just stay here for the night and take care of our babies."

Both Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Woods nodded slowly, looking anxious, and Mary looked at Lily. "Zabini said they were outnumbered. By how many? And more importantly: what can we do about that?"

Her friend bit her lip. "The Ministry?" she suggested.

Mary shook her head. "Moody said Voldemort has more spies in the Ministry than anywhere else. Besides, we would confirm and reveal the existence of the Order."

After a doubtful moment, Lily nodded. "Okay," she said, looking determined. "Then I suggest we'll go there ourselves and see what we can do."

Mary nodded and she looked over at her own and Lily's mother. "We will contact you as soon as possible."

"Please be careful," they whispered at the same time. It reminded Mary of what she had said to Sirius only a few hours ago. Her stomach cringed with fear: was he alright? Or would he already be dead? Injured? Soulless? She shook her head to shake off these disturbing thoughts and focused on disapparating to Oxford instead. She arrived a few seconds later than Lily. Once she could breathe in the pleasant cool evening air and the smell of freshly mown grass, she opened her eyes. They were standing on a stretch of grass that was leading straight to a building called Magdalen College. Mary recognized it from Sirius's map. It was oddly calm. Other than the natural sound of a few owls and crickets in the trees and bushes, it was silent. _Too_ silent. Lily glanced at Mary. "Wands at the ready?"

Mary nodded, already scanning the dark environment as closely as possible. "Let's go."

The girls ran across the field, occasionally hiding behind a large tree to check if there were any Death Eaters around. They safely reached the walls of the Magadalen building. Still there was no sign of life: neither Voldemort, his Death Eaters or any Order-members seemed to be there. But all of that changed in a split second.

When Mary and Lily finally rounded the corner that led to a beautiful courtyard, they seemed to walk into a wall of ice.

Dementors.

And not just one, hundreds of them were swarming over the courtyard. A small group of terrified wizards and witches were huddled behind pillars, shivering badly as they were being approached by the Dementors. Without their wands, they did not stand a chance. Mary was momentarily overpowered by a paralyzing wave of coldness; images of Brice and Fabian's dead bodies flashed through her mind when, to her utter horror, she spotted a bunch of wizards and witches lying in a heap against a wall. They were not dead, but stared at the sky without actually seeing anything at all; their eyes dull and unmoving. These people had already been kissed by Dementors and there was nothing they could do to help them.

Then Lily suddenly nudged her. Frank and Alice had apparated out of nowhere and were trying to protect the wandless people that still had souls. "_Expecto Patronum!_" they yelled anxiously. "_Expecto Patronum!_" But there were simply too many Dementors to defeat them all at once. Mary and Lily exchanged one glance and drew their wands. "_Expecto Patronum!_" they called as one.

From the tip of their wands sprung a doe and a Dalmatian dog that charged the Dementors head on. Together with Frank and Alice's Patronuses, they managed to drive away the Dementors far enough to get the trapped witches and wizards out of there. While Frank and Alice continued to keep the Dementors at a safe distance, Mary and Lily guided the prisoners to safety. Mary was dragging along a shivering middle-aged witch. When she shot her a closer look, she realized it was Miranda Goshawk, the author of the Standard Book of Spells-series. "Come on," she said soothingly. "You'll be alright now."

They had reached the main road. Terrified the Death Eaters would show up any second now, Mary – still supporting Goshawk - looked at Lily. "Now what? They cannot disapparate."

"I know," Lily sighed. She looked around the street and spotted a couple of Muggle taxi's at the other end of the road. "That'll have to do," she said before pushing the group of wizards in the direction of the cabs.

Mary helped putting the dazed (and sometimes weakly protesting) wizards in the cars and wondered how on earth they were going to pay the cab drivers. But Lily happened to have some Muggle-money with her and she paid the drivers in advance. When they were watching the taxi's take off, Mary shot her friend an astonished look. "Since when do you carry Muggle-money with you at all times?"

"I don't," Lily replied, already turning back. "My mum gave me a bonus earlier today. I was supposed to use it to buy new clothes for Harry, but hey, this works too."

Despite everything, Mary laughed. The two of them apparated back to the courtyard, where – to Mary's relief – the Dementors had disappeared. On the downside, so had Frank and Alice. Once again the courtyard of Magdalen College had gone back to being completely deserted and unnaturally quiet. Apart from the soulless shells of Dementor victims against the wall, the only breathing creatues around were her and Lily. Mary was about to suggest to take a look inside when a door at the other end burst open.

Mary and Lily, who were on their guard, simultaneously pointed their wands straight at the intruder and were ready to defend themselves. But they didn't have to, because it was Hagrid who bolted out of the door. "Oh thank Merlin!" he boomed loudly.

"Shhhh!" Lily hissed urgently, ushering him to lower his voice.

"Sorry 'bout that," he panted when he had reached them. "But it's jus'… Mary, I need yeh teh come inside right now."

Mary's stomach plummeted. "What do you mean?" she asked anxisouly. "Is it Siri-"

"It's Zabini," Hagrid interrupted. "Some kind of mutated snake bit him. Well, I say snake, but… even I've never seen somethin' like tha'. He's…"

"How bad is it?" Lily asked.

"He's dyin', possibly," he said, looking worried and afraid. "Which is why we need Mary teh.. Hey, where yeh're goin'?!"

Mary was already running towards the door. Zabini had been bitten by a mutated snake… If even _Hagrid_ said he never saw a creature like that before, it must have been something really twisted and dangerous. With another nervous pang in her stomach, Mary realized that this had been Edgar's expertise, not hers. Her fears of feeling inferior to Moody and Dumbledore were about to be revealed. But she did know this: if there was _anyone_ left who could Heal Zabini, it was her. And she was going to do anything in her power to save his life.

End of Update

**A/N Not that bad of a cliffie after all, eh? At least I think it's not so bad. Anyway, I'm really excited that we've finally arrived at this part of the story. I think that the next update is probably one of the best chapters I've written in this story so far, but until we get to that point: don't forget to tell me what you thought of this update. Comments are always well appreciated! I do have a little teaser (actually it is quite long, haha!) of the next chapter, though. Enjoy!**

_In an attempt to block out the familiar sounds of battle and the ever nagging worry about Sirius, Mary turned her attention back to Zabini who, to her utter shock, was just waking up. He grabbed the collar of her robes and pulled her down to him. "Help… me," he stammered, gasping, his chest rising and falling rapidly._

"Don't worry, I'll fix you up in no time," Mary lied brightly in an attempt to sound determined.

She failed miserably. Her voice wavered and her hands were trembling when she tried to get a better grip on her wand. Zabini, even if it was only for a second, seemed to realize what was going on. He dropped his head back to the ground with a groan. His nose, Mary noticed, had started to bleed as well; proof that the venom was now also attacking his brains.

Moody had spotted it too. "What are you waiting for? Do something!"

Mary, knowing perfectly well it was a lost case, carefully dabbed Zabini's sweaty forehead with her sleeve before casting a simple fever inducing charm. Moody, getting a sense of what she was doing, finally lost his patience with her. "That's not good enough!"

"I know that, Mad-Eye," she hissed back, looking back over her shoulder where a loud bang indicated that the battle next door was not nearly coming to an end.

"Get your act together and CURE HIM!" Moody roared, glaring at her furiously, both of his eyes focused on her for a change.


	77. Cheating Death

Chapter Seventy-Seven

**Chapter ****Seventy-Seven**

Mary was sprinting through the hallway of the Magdalen building, her footsteps echoing on the marble floor. It was a corridor with a high ceiling, many paintings on the wall and several statues in the alcoves. It reminded her of Hogwarts, with the exception that these paintings weren't moving and, as far as Mary could see, there were no ghosts here. The corridor was long and it felt like an eternity to reach the end. She spotted some piles of mortar on the ground that belonged to severely damaged marble statues; silent witnesses of a battle that had taken place earlier that night.

Once again Mary's insides squirmed with fear and worry at the thought of Sirius. Where was he? And James, Remus, Peter? They all seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth. She could hear two pairs of pounding footstepts behind her and guessed they did not belong to Death Eaters, but Lily and Hagrid. Her presumption was confirmed when she heard her friend call: "Mare, wait up!"

But Mary did not reply to Lily's cry. She was finally rounding the corner and ran straight into another elongated passage. Nothing could have prepared her for the scene she was walking in on. The dark corridor was completely deserted for a small group of people standing a few yards away. They were huddled around a man who was on the ground. Even from this distance Mary could see he was shivering badly.

She slowed down slightly when she was approaching the group, who hadn't spotted her yet. Mary couldn't help but search the crowd for Sirius's face, but he was not there. She tried to tell herself he was probably out somewhere kicking Voldemort's ass, but she could not silence a terse little voice inside whispering this was a bad sign. At that moment, the other two rounded the corner as well and Hagrid, making a lot more noise than she had done, made the others look around. "Thank Merlin, Mary!" Frank called before ushering her to come over.

Mary took a few deep breaths and walked towards them. She noticed that besides Frank, Alice was there, with James and Moody. They all stepped aside so she could have her space. From the corner of her eye, she could see a clearly relieved Lily flinging her arms around her husband's neck. Mary crouched down next to Zabini, momentarily clueless on what to do. Oh that's right, she thought: examine him, diagnose, Heal. Just like she would treat any other patient.

She looked at an unconscious Zabini, whose limbs were shaking uncontrollably. His dark face was, besides sweaty, swollen and seemed almost red. Mary's hands were trembling a little when she lifted his torn shirt to have a look at his torso. There were clear signs of inward haemorrhages on his chest, stomach and shoulders. On second thought, the haemorrhages seemed to be slowly spreading towards his limbs. Mary was just grabbing her wand to cast a basic styptic charm when she remembered Zabini had been bitten by an animal. "Hagrid," she asked. "What got him?"

"I dunno exac'ly. It was movin' so fast, but slytherin' on the ground. It looked like a snake, bu' with three heads, like a Runespoor."

Mary felt Zabini's shaking legs with her hands and noticed the inmistakable mark of a snake bite near his ankle and immediately cast a charm on the wound to stop the poison from spreading through his body, but she feared it was already too late.

"Runespoor?" James echoed, looking horrified, after watching Mary for another moment.

Hagrid nodded gravely and Moody swore, but Lily looked merely confused and so did Alice. "A Runespoor? What is that?" she asked.

James was about to answer when Zabini groaned and everybody stared at him. "It's a highly poisonous three-headed snake that is native to Africa," Mary replied instead. She was hoping against hope she was wrong when she looked at Moody and said: "We got a briefing at St. Mungo's right before my maternity leave. Apparently Dark wizards abroad, mostly in the Middle-East, are breeding more Runespoors and mutating them in secret. The board of directors at the hospital already feared it was only a matter of time before Voldemort would get his hands on them."

No one said anything and they stared down at Zabini instead, who was now writhing in pain. "What does this mean?" Lily asked after another moment. "Can you save him?"

"It depends." Mary wiped her brow. "Hagrid, what did the Runespoor look like? Was it orange?"

Hagrid shook his head. "It was more of a-"

"Not blue?" she asked anxiously, trying to hold Zabini's shaking shoulders on the ground, which was not an easy task considering he was a lot bigger and stronger than she was.

"Er well, it was rather blueish," he replied worriedly, kneeling down to help keeping Zabini on the ground. "With brigh' violet markings, I think…"

This time it was Mary who swore. She pushed back Zabini's head to check his mouth and throat; several little blisters and wounds on his lips and in his mouth were bleeding. She cast another spell to reduce the swelling, but it was no good. And Mary knew why. If she didn't bring Zabini to St. Mungo's at once, he would die in this very hallway. If that would still be in time, which she seriously doubted. This mutated poison was even more toxic than the ordinary Runespoor venom. Mary once saw a man being brought in that had only been bitten half an hour beforehand; fifteen minutes later he was dead.

But Zabini was too weak to survive an Apparition to St. Mungo's at this point. Mary continued to cast Healing charms to stabilize his condition so he could be transported, but she already noticed her spells didn't have any effect. The others had been watching her silently, until... "His fingers are turning purple," Alice said, looking alarmed.

Mary looked down and noticed she was right. She started to realize that she was way out of her league. Spells, her specialization, wouldn't do any good here. She pulled a hand through her hair, looking desperate.

Lily had clapped her hand to her mouth. "What is happening to him?"

Mary sighed. "The bite from this mutated snake becomes incurable after a very short amount of time. And it's highly, _highly_ dangerous. The effects are comparable to the worst stages of radiation sickness."

Lily gasped, but the others shot her a confused look. "Radiation sickness?" James asked.

"The result is absolutely gruesome, but in short: he's burning up on the inside, his organs are melting and ultimately, he'll die of internal bleedings." Ignoring the horrifed looks on the other's faces, she looked at Hagrid. "How long ago did he get bitten?"

"No' sure," he replied. "I foun' him like this."

"But you just said you saw a snake flee from the scene," Moody noted, eyeing him closely.

"Er well, I saw somethin' blueish disappearin' through a small crack in the wall."

"But then it's not too late!" Moody called, looking hopeful. "Get to it, Woods. _Now_."

"What do you I have been trying to do here?" she replied, shooting him an annoyed look. "Spells alone won't help him. He needs an antidote that hasn't been fully tested yet. And even then…"

"But there must be something you can do."

"This is not my area of expertise. If only Edgar would still-"

"Edgar is dead," Moody cut her off. "You're all we've got now. Make it work."

"Moody…" Frank said warningly.

Moody scowled and Mary stared at Zabini. His breathing was faltering and she knew he must be in terrible pain. It was frustrating that she probably couldn't Heal him, no matter what Moody said. She doubted even Edgar would have been able to help him, the snake venon was already doing its irretrievable and destructive damage. Just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, she heard the sound of approaching footsteps and looked up in alarm.

"Could tha' be Sirius, Remus an' the others?" Hagrid asked.

James shook his head, clutching his wand. "They're with too many, Hagrid. I think we've got company."

"But what about...?" Lily said, looking at Zabini.

There was a brief tense silence when the approaching footsteps became louder and louder, and then Moody spoke up. "You guys go off to buy Mary time to try and Heal Zabini. I'll stay here to assist her."

The others nodded and left Mary, Moody and Zabini behind as they turned as one and ran to the corner of the hallway, ready to dive into battle and only a few seconds later, Mary knew they were duelling against many Death Eaters. In an attempt to block out the familiar sounds of battle and the ever nagging worry about Sirius, Mary turned her attention back to Zabini who, to her utter shock, was just waking up. He grabbed the collar of her robes and pulled her down to him. "Help… me," he stammered, gasping, his chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Don't worry, I'll fix you up in no time," Mary lied brightly in an attempt to sound determined.

She failed miserably. Her voice wavered and her hands were trembling when she tried to get a better hold on her wand. Zabini, even if it was only for a second, seemed to realize what was going on. He dropped his head back to the ground with a groan. His nose, Mary noticed, had started to bleed as well; proof that the venom was now also attacking his brains.

Moody had spotted it too. "What are you waiting for? Do something!"

Mary, knowing perfectly well it was a lost case, carefully dabbed Zabini's sweaty forehead with her sleeve before casting a mere fever inducing charm. Moody, getting a sense of what she was doing, finally lost his patience with her. "That's not good enough!"

"I know that, Mad-Eye," she hissed back, looking back over her shoulder where a loud bang indicated that the battle next door was not nearly coming to an end.

"Get your act together and CURE HIM!" Moody roared, glaring at her furiously, both eyes focused on her for a change.

"I can't!"

The Auror stared at her for a moment before saying hoarsely: "Nothing could Heal him now? Not even taking him to St. Mungo's?"

Mary shook her head, her throat quickly closing up with despair and fear. Moody glared at her, his wand in his hand and for one terrifying moment, she thought he was going to curse her. But then his gaze slowly dropped like he was being called by a voice she could not hear. Zabini - still awake - and Moody exchanged the briefest of glances and Mary had the distinct impression they were communicating non-verbally. The Auror stood there, impassive for a few seconds and then, when Zabini's head fell back once more and he closed his eyes, Moody pointed his wand straight at his chest.

"_Avada Kedavra!_"

There was a blinding flash of green light; Mary screamed and fell back to the wall. Her gaze dropped to Zabini; unmoving and unmistakably dead, but at peace now, or so it seemed. She stared at his lifeless body in shock before finally looking up at Moody. "What did you do? Why…?"

"You said he could not be helped. I eased his passing," Moody said matter-of-factly, twirling his wand around. Zabini's body disappeared. "I transported it to my house, so that the Death Eaters cannot touch it," he explained, noticing her astonished look.

Mary was still trying to process she had just witnessed a Killing Curse being carried out. "You..." she stammered. "The Killing Curse, you… How?"

"He asked me to," Moody said gruffly, offering a hand to pull her up.

She took it reluctantly. "You should have warned me."

Moody's magic eye was focused on the battle in the corridor behind them, but his normal eye was shimmering dangerously when he looked at her. "Forgive me for being too engaged in easing a good friend's passing to remember to protect your precious innocent eyes from the disturbing truth."

"I didn't mean it like that," Mary said quickly. "But you just cast an Unforgivable Curse! You'll be sent to Azkaban for this."

"Crouch has given Aurors permission to cast Unforgivables if they have to. Didn't Sirius tell you that?"

"No," Mary replied, looking astonished when she remembered something else. "Speaking of Sirius, where is he?"

Moody was about to answer when there was a loud bang that made the castle shake on its foundations; the explosion blew away the entire corner of the hallway and Mary could see James, Lily and Frank flying back through the air. They got smacked against the opposite wall and Mary hurried over to them, shielding her face from the falling debree. James had already gotten back to his feet and was helping Lily to get up. They looked shaken, but were otherwise unharmed. Mary jumped over the remains of a pillar and kneeled down next to Frank, who didn't seem to have any serious injuries either. However, there was a badly bleeding gash on his forehead and Mary placed the tip of her wand against the wound: "_Caedenseo_."

Frank touched the Healed wound and noticed the bleeding had been stopped. "Thanks," he said gratefully as he crawled back up. "How's Zabini?"

"Dead," Mary replied shortly, but before she could be a little more specific about what happened, she and Frank got attacked by three apparating Death Eaters. One of them grabbed Mary from behind, but Frank shot a quick curse at him that gave her the well-needed time to shake herself free and reach for her own wand.

They battled side by side, jets of red and green light flying around the room and rebouncing on the walls. Mary recognized one of the Death Eaters as Allison Zabini and hesitated for one moment – would she already know that her uncle died only a few minutes ago? – before realizing it was partly because of her that Zabini came out here tonight. A rush of anger welled up inside and she duelled with more power and strength than ever before. Allison's eyes widened in shock when she noticed she was fighting Mary, but she managed to avoid all the hexes and when she had jumped behind a book case, she pointed her wand at the wall right behind Mary. "_Deprimo!_"

An explosion made a hole the size of a small house to appear. The impact made Mary lose balance and her attempt to hold onto the side of the wall was in vain; she tumbled right through the hole along with the rest of the debree. Mary crashed down several feet before she had reached, what she assumed to be, the basement. She ended up on a ridge with a loud thud, which went by unnoticed because the debree crashing down to the ground made even more noise. But the ledge was high (about fourteen feet above the ground) and small; she had to cling onto the railing with all her might. This turned out to be crucial, because once the worst shock of falling down three floors and surviving had passed, Mary noticed she was not alone.

And the people standing only a few yards away from her were not friends. It was a good thing a couple of tall filing cabinets were hiding her from view from the eyes of three Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort himself. Mary tried to hoist herself back onto the ridge, but she was already starting to slip away. While she was desperately trying to regain her grip, clenching her wand between her teeth, Mary caught some very disquieting soundbites from the conversation below. One of the Death Eaters, a woman, spoke with the utmost devotion. "But my Lord, they _are_ here. I've seen them myself, but… They did not come down alone."

"Of course they didn't," Voldemort replied in his high voice that sent shivers down Mary's spine. "But I have given you strict and clear orders, have I not?"

"My Lord," came a quiet voice from the corner that Mary recognized as Severus Snape's. "The powerful Aurors Moody and Zabini are with them, together with Albus Dumbledore."

"As was to be expected. But that does not change our goal: to capture James and Lily Potter."

Mary was so shocked that she was forgetting to hold on to the rail, causing her hands to slip a few dangerous inches. She was now hanging solely by her arms, swinging back and forth. Her hands were starting to tingle, but she hardly felt it. Why did Voldemort need James and Lily and more importantly: what was he going to do when he captured them?

"Oh, we _will_, my Lord," another man said. "But they won't be going down without a fight."

Voldemort's voice sounded unnervingly calm when he spoke again. "Didn't I tell you very clearly, Mulciber, to bring them to me _unharmed_? I don't give a damn about what you'll do with the others. Kill them for all I care, but the Potters are not to be harmed. Yet…" he added softly and Mary could vividly imagine a vicious cold smile playing around his lips.

"Yes, my Lord," the woman answered breathlessly. "I-"

A door on the other side burst open. "My Lord! Dumbledore and a few others have reached the central Hall," a new male voice spoke excitingly.

"Ah Lucius, about time," Voldemort said. "Do excuse me while I go and finish off the "greatest wizard of the era" and everyone else around." He had spoken of Dumbledore with the highest sarcasm and the present Death Eaters sniggered appreciatively. "I expect you have the Potters by the time I return."

He and Lucius Malfoy disapparated at the same time, the last one with a soft pop and Voldemort without making any sound at all. When Mary tried to pull herself up again, she heard the woman was ordering Snape and Mulciber to patrol every corridor in the castle. "You and Mulciber take the hallway on the right and I will check out the left one myself," Snape replied right when Mary's left hand slipped from the railing.

The woman, Snape and Mulciber were still discussing how they were going to find Lily and James. Mary was now dangling by just her right arm, swaying dangerously. The filing cabinets were large enough to keep her from view, but she was not going to hold on much longer. Her arm was aching and her hands were sweaty; it would only be a matter of seconds before she would have to let go. She shot a desperate look around the basement and there, about thirty feet ahead of her was a stairway that led to the next floor. There was some debree on the ground, but she could still reach the stairs in time if she was really fast. But the Death Eaters would definitely kill her if they spotted her, so she needed a distraction. Mary's eyes found the filing cabinets. It was her only chance…

She grabbed her wand from her mouth with her free hand, pointed it at the filing cabinet, took a deep breath and - right when her other hand slipped from the railing and she started to fall – twisted in midair and gave it a powerful flick. She knew her diversion had worked when she landed on the floor unnoticed while the Death Eaters were being attacked by heavy flying drawers from the cabinets. But Mary did not look back and sprinted towards the stairway, the screams ringing in her ears. She had just reached the bottom when the female Death Eater spotted her after all. "Get her! Get her!" she yelled, already casting a curse. The jet of red light missed Mary by inches. She continued to ran up the stairs, crossing her fingers she would not get hit by any of the hexes being sent at her. She almost made it to the top.

Almost.

Right before she would have disappeared from view, she got hit by a powerful hex that knocked the breath right out of her and made her tumble over. One of the Death Eaters hurried over to her. When he yelled "It's not a Potter!", Mary realized it was Mulciber, an old "aquaintance" (he had poisoned her in their fifth year) from Hogwarts.

Snape and the female Death Eater that had remained downstairs had not seen her yet. "No redhead?" the woman asked, slightly disappointed.

"Nope, definitely _not_ a redhead," Mulciber confirmed.

"Finish her off, then," the witch said coolly. "Snape, you're coming with me to the left side. Mulciber, when you're done with her, check out the right side and meet us back here. I don't want to disappoint the Dark Lord again."

"Yeah, yeah," Mulciber called back and when Snape and the woman had left the basement, he quietly added "Whatever, you psycho," before reaching down to turn Mary, still trying to catch her breath, over. He looked momentarily stunned when he recognized her. "_Woods?_ Well, have I ever…"

Mary couldn't speak and Mulciber laughed. He roughly dragged her to the next floor and into an alcove where he dropped her on the ground. He grabbed her wand before flicking his own, undoing the hex and she sat up on her hands and knees, gasping for air. Mulciber sniggered. "Long time, no see."

Mary looked up at him. "Let me go."

He arched an eyebrow. "Go? I think not. None of your friends, not to mention your own boyfriend, are here to rescue your Mudblood butt this time. I can do anything I want with you and they wouldn't even notice."

"Aren't you supposed to patrol the corridors right now?" Mary asked loudly, trying to win as much time as possible. If only one of the Order-members would walk by or hear her…

"Oh, so you want me finish this quickly?" he replied, an evil glint in his cold blue eyes. "But I don't want to, Woods. I feel we have some catching up to do. It's been years. Now let's see…" He twirled his wand around in his fingers for a moment before finally pointing it at her. "Ah, I know. _Crucio!_"

It was like being hit with lightening. Mary felt like she was being perforated with sharp tiny knifes. Her spine was burning, her intestines seemed to be on fire, her muscles were twisting in agony. The pain was blinding and Mary could not do anything else than writhing in pain and scream. Her only hope was that at least someone would be hearing her high screams, which were resounding in the hollow hallway.

At the very moment she thought she would be passing out from the pain, it disappeared. Mulciber had lifted his wand. "Not nice, eh?"

Mary was shivering when she tried to push herself up from the floor. "You filthy son of a-"

"Think about it, darling," Mulciber replied with narrowed eyes. "I'm the one with two wands or do you want me to do it again? I bet you even liked it, huh? You always seemed like _that_ kind of girl to me."

Mary glared at him and even though she knew it would be best to keep her mouth shut, she hissed: "Go ahead, then."

Within the blink of an eye, he had cast the Cruciatus Curse on her for the second time and Mary was once again writhing on the floor, screaming, the tears streaming down her face. When he finally lifted the curse, she was stretched out on her back, panting. He crouched down next to her. "D'you know how many Cruciatus Curses it takes to kill or drive someone mad?"

"Four," Mary replied through clenched teeth.

"Then we're halfway there already. Tell me Woods, do you think Black still wants you once you've gone insane? I dare to doubt that and he is supposed to come to his senses one of these days anyway." He softly ran his finger from her forehead to her lips until Mary jerked her head away and he smiled viciously. "It's a shame you have filthy blood, you really are a beautiful girl."

He reached for her wand. "The thing is, you've heard stuff you are supposed to know nothing about, so you're leaving me no choice. Now, I'll be reasonable if you work along. I doubt your wand has ever killed before, so how about starting with you? Poor Sirius might even think you took your own life…"

Mulciber waved the wand in her face like it was the pointer of a clock. "Eeny, meenie, miny, moo… Unless wait, I'll let you choose. Cruciatus till death or insanity or the Killing Curse: your pick."

He shot her an evil grin, full of malice, and Mary knew he was taunting her. But she would not be giving him the pleasure of showing an audible fear of dying. Instead, she shot him a hateful look and spit him right in the face. Mulciber slowly raised his hand to wipe it off his face before getting up straight. "Have it your way, then."

He pointed his wand at her and a tearful Mary closed her eyes, devastated she would never see Sirius and Erin again but at the same time, hopeful he would survive to take care of and raise their daughter. She was gulping with fear when she heard Mulciber cry: _"Avada Ke-"_

Mary heard a loud bang and a body dropping to the floor. She opened her eyes in shock. She was still in the very same hallway, laying on the marble floor. Mary looked around, feeling dazed. She scratched her head in confusion. If this was heaven, it sure was a rotten place. No such thing as flowery fields, calm streams and eternal sunshine, but a muggy smelling alcove in an old castle. She looked sideways and spotted a stunned Mulciber next to her, faced down. She was only just realizing she had not died after all when a heavily panting Alice appeared next to her. "Merlin's Beard Mary, are you alright?"

Mary stared at her friend in shock. "I... I think so," she said in a trembling voice.

"I heard your screams downstairs and hurried over, hoping I would still get here in time. Was he torturing you?"

She nodded, swallowing with difficulty. "Yes… And about to kill me too."

Alice put an arm around her. "I'm so glad you're okay. Sirius is…"

Mary jerked her head back up and stared at Alice. "Sirius is _what_?!"

"Well, he's… I'm sorry, but-"

"Is he dead?" she asked, her insides squirming even more badly than while being tortured with the Cruciatus Curse.

Alice shook her head. "No, but it's not good either. He's hurt and it's dangerous out there, Voldemort and Dumbledore are duelling and…"

"Take me to him."

"But you're too weak-"

"_Now_, Alice!"

Her friend nodded and – after having tied up a stunned Mulciber and shoving him into the alcove - helped Mary back to her feet. "This way," she said before heading down another elongated corridor. Mary followed her, feeling numb and with severe trembling legs. At least Sirius was not dead. Yet, the annoying little voice in her head said. Mary shook her head vehemently to get rid of this disturbing thought. They were going to be fine, they had to be. But while she and Alice were running through the hallway, a small part of Mary couldn't help but thinking that _if_ Sirius was going to die tonight after all, she would secretly be wishing Mulciber had carried out that Killing Curse before Alice showed up after all.

End of Update

**A/N Okay, one would call the ending to this chapter a cliffihanger, but I really think it's not such a bad one this time. Know that I included more in this update than I originally planned to (meaning it's even longer than usual), just to give you guys a more "bearable" cliffie, haha. Anyway, like I said: I believe this is one of the best chapters in this story so far, but then again: I like writing action sequences.**

**Let me know if you liked it too and for now, I'll leave you guys with a teaser of the next chapter:**

_Peter was standing on the opposite balcony. It looked like he was trying to find a way down to get to Remus. James was waving frantically to draw his attention. "No Wormtail. __Stay there__, you idiot!"_

Thankfully, Peter spotted James before he could climb down. But he merely pointed down at Remus - who was still slumped down against the wall, breathing heavily – and then to himself before moving on.

"Damn it, Peter!" James bellowed, forgetting that any present Death Eater would now know where to find them. "That ledge is never going to hold you!" When Peter ignored his friend's command, he drew his wand. "Don't think I won't curse you!" he threatened.

When Mary looked back at James, she knew he meant business. But Peter didn't seem – or perhaps he didn't want to – understand what it was about. Then things happened really fast. The very moment Peter set foot on the ledge, it came down with a deafening crash, right on top of Remus, burying him under a pile of rocks and debree.

Dumbledore, who had managed to force Voldemort into a tight corner, shifted his attention to Remus's corner for only the split of a second, but it was all Voldemort needed. He casted an unexpected curse that made the Hogwarts Headmaster soar backwards through the air until he hit the wall. Voldemort did not linger to see if he killed his opponent and disapparated, shortly followed by the Death Eaters who were not unconscious or captured. 


	78. Don't Look Now

Chapter Seventy-Eight

**Chapter Seventy-Eight**

Did she really just think that? Was she actually thinking that if Sirius died tonight, there would be nothing left to stay alive for? Of course not, Mary reasoned with a pang of guilt in her heart. Erin… At least one of them had to make it through the night to take care of their baby girl. And didn't Alice just say Sirius was still alive? Mary glanced at her friend, who was guiding them through the extensive corridor with her wand out, eyeing the surroundings attentively. "We should turn right here," she whispered and led the way into yet another extensive hallway.

"This place is a freaking labyrinth!" Mary whispered back while trying to make her legs stop shaking badly, a nasty side-effect from Mulciber's torture curse.

Alice nodded. "This is why we had to study those maps. I thought it was a bit silly at the time to tell you the truth, but now I definitely see why-"

They suddenly stopped walking when they heard a stumbling sound from behind the corner. Mary and Alice exchanged a concerned glance and approached the corner with their wands raised. Alice was about to round it when they could hear Frank's voice. "Down here, Moody. I tied those Death Eaters up here, see?"

"Frank!" Alice cried, running over to her husband.

"Alice?" he replied looking surprised, his voice a little muffled because she was hugging him so closely. "Where have you been?"

Alice pointed at Mary, who was slumping down the wall to sit and give her shaking legs a rest. "I had to get Mary."

Moody walked over to her with a worried frown on his face. "You alright?"

She nodded slowly. "I just need a moment to regain my strength."

"She's been tortured," Alice said quietly. "Cruciatus Curse. Mulciber did it."

Frank swore. "He's going to pay for that."

Moody said nothing and just got out his wand instead. Mary eyed it wearily; she had not forgotten he killed Zabini with it earlier that night. "I'll be fine," she said. "My legs just have to start obeying my orders again, that's all."

Moody din't respond and tapped her legs with his wand while muttering a spell Mary did not recognize. A white light erupted from the tip that seemed to sink down into her skin. Whatever the charm did worked, because her legs finally stopped shaking. "Spell not too strong?" Moody asked. "It can temporarily paralyze your legs if it is."

"No no, it's fine. Thanks."

"Where's Mulciber?" Frank asked, watching how Mary crawled back to her feet.

"Oh, we got him," Alice said. "Stunned and shoved him into one of the alcoves, actually."

"Then we must get him out of there before the Death Eaters find him," Moody said, already running into the direction Mary and Alice had come from.

Frank followed and Alice was about to run off as well when she stopped and looked back. "You're not coming."

Mary shook her head. Despite a strong longing to permanently transfigure Mulciber's head into that of a toad's, she knew other things were more important. "Sirius needs me."

Alice nodded. "You need to go to the centrall Hall. From up here, walk straight to the very end of this corridor where you'll turn left, right and left again. Please be careful… Voldemort is out there."

She shot her a last meaningful look and ran off. When she had disappeared from view, Mary turned and ran to the end of the corridor. She was completely on her own now. If she walked in on a couple of Death Eaters, Snape and that woman from the basement for example, she would not stand a chance. But Mary did not come across anyone. At the end of the corridor, she turned left. Then right, and left again. She knew she was on the right track when she heard the sound of fierce battle coming from the other end.

Mary took a deep breath, rounded the corner to the balcony and found herself looking out over a scene she could only describe as shocking. The central Hall of the Magdalen building must have been impressive and sophisticated one day, but that was before the Death Eaters and the Order decided to use it as a location to cross wands.

Now several parts of the balcony and the large marble staircase had been destroyed. Not a single chair was standing up left, the bookcases at the right side of the Hall had all been pulled down and three of the five large chandeliers from the ceiling had crashed down onto the floor, that was littered with pieces of glass. Finally, some jinxes had hit the water pipes on the ceiling in several places, and the (magically amplified) water was raining down on the balcony, pouring over the railing to the ground like a thundering waterfall.

Mary's stomach suddenly gave a powerful lurch. She had only just realized there were people on the ground. People partly buried under the debris, people laying faced down with their limbs sprawled in unnatural positions… And – she gasped – was that _Sirius_? Mary leaned over the balcony to get a closer look, hardly noticing the bright colored and powerful spells and hexes from a fierce duel that was taking place on the other side of the Hall, and concluded this man, crushed by one of the chandeliers, was not Sirius, or any Order-member for that matter.

Mary's eyes anxiously searched the rest of the Hall for any sign of him and there, in the very centre, lay a young man on his back and with another sickening jolt, Mary knew this was Sirius. She would recognize his silhouette anywhere. Even from this hight, she could see his condition was serious. He was panting, there was a large gash above his left eyebrow and he seemed to be laying in a pool of… Was that blood? Mary acted on impulse. She swung her legs over the slippery balcony, trying to breathe through the paralyzing coldness of the water, and was about to let go when she got pulled back by a pair of arms. "Let me go!" she shouted, trying to wrench free, but the other (male) person was much stronger than she was.

Mary didn't even know if the man was a friend or foe, but she did not care. She just needed to get to Sirius right now. If he had been bitten by one of those mutated Runespoors like Zabini… Terrified that Sirius would die while she was being held back, Mary continued to kick and wrench in a desperate attempt to break free. "No, no, no!" she yelled, hardly realizing her cries could attract more Death Eaters or even Voldemort himself.

"Damn it Mary, shut it!"

She froze. "_James?!_"

"Yes! What are you thinking going down there?"

"Sirius! He's badly injured, I need to-"

James, within seconds becoming soaking wet like her, was still holding her, as if he knew she would try jumping off the balcony the second he let go. "I know," he said heavily, sounding more worried than Mary had ever heard him. "But it's too dangerous. You can't help him now, or Remus and Hagrid."

Remus? Hagrid? Mary shot another anxious look over the balcony and spotted the body of Hogwarts's gamekeeper. She was not very surprised she had missed it before. Hagrid was buried under a large pile of books and arm chairs; only his heavy boots and a tuft of bushy hair remained visible. And Remus… He wasn't that far away from Sirius. He was injured, but not as severe as his friend. He had slumped down against one of the walls, clasping his shoulder while panting heavily.

"I… I need to get to them," Mary stammered. "I need to h-help them, please James."

"You could get hit or Voldemort could use you to get to Dumbledore. You're not going, Mary, not now."

"But you don't understand!" she cried. She had started to hyperventilate and was no longer thinking rationally. If she did not reach Sirius in time, he and perhaps Hagrid too, would die. But Sirius, he was everything to her. If he died, she wouldn't know what to do. Erin would not know her dad, would have to grow up without a father…

James merely strengthened his grip. "Mary, listen to me!" he shouted, shaking his head to get the water out of his eyes. "You can't go down, not while Voldemort and Dumbledore are still duelling."

For the first time since arriving in the Hall, Mary looked towards the other end. She now realized where those bright colored and powerful hexes were coming from. Dumbledore and Voldemort were fighting a fierce battle on some kind of stage, using spells and hexes Mary had never seen before. While she was watching Voldemort warding off the burning Phoenix that Dumbledore sent at him, she could hear James start muttering under his breath. Listening closely, her eyes still fixed on the duel, she realized he was calling Sirius. "Come on, talk to me, Padfoot…"

The thought of a dying Sirius instantly made Mary start kicking around again ("Just let me go!"), and she only stopped when James nudged her hard. She shot him a furious look over her shoulder, but his gaze was fixed on someone below. Mary followed his gaze over the balcony until she had found her boyfriend and to her surprise, he was looking right back at her. Only for a few seconds, and she knew it was taking him a lot of crucial energy to look up at her like this. Neverthelss, he looked straight into her terrified eyes and his mouth formed a simple word: "Don't."

That was all he managed before he closed his eyes again, his head falling back to the flooded floor. But it was enough. Mary finally understood it was crucial that one of them would survive this night, for Erin. She had to stay here until either Dumbledore or Voldemort ended the duel and with that, the battle at Magdalen.

James seemed to notice she was calming down slightly, although she was not feeling any less worried about Sirius. Or Hagrid, who hadn't moved at all since she last looked at him. James let go and she didn't move an inch. She just stood there, her gaze altering between Sirius's body and the duel of Voldemort and Dumbledore every few seconds. For the first time that night, it seemed the odds were in favour of the Order.

Meanwhile, Mary was hardly noticing the cold water raining down on their heads. James reached for her hand and squeezed it tightly. She looked up and saw he was trying to smile in a reassuring way, but he failed miserably and Mary knew he was just as scared for his best friend's life as she was. Lily suddenly appeared on Mary's other side and wrapped a comforting arm around her waist. "He's going to make it, Mare," she said confidently. "I know he will. Sirius is the strongest guy I have ever seen."

"Hello," James said, quasi-insulted. "I'm standing _right_ here."

"Well, you know what I mean," Lily answered, half-laughing.

Mary looked at James again and despite the depressing situation, she snorted. His hair was (due to the powerful stream of water) completely flat. She couldn't even remember the last time she had seen his hair this flat. She was about to make a joke about it when she noticed his eyes had widened in shock. She followed his gaze with a feeling of apprehension. Peter was standing on the opposite balcony. It looked like he was trying to find a way to get down to Remus. James was waving frantically to draw his attention. "No Wormtail. _Stay there_, you idiot!"

Thankfully, Peter spotted James before he could climb down. But he just pointed down to Remus - who was still slumped down against the wall, breathing heavily – and then to himself before moving on.

"Damn it, Peter!" James bellowed, forgetting any present Death Eater would now know where to find them. "That ledge is never going to hold you!" When Peter ignored his friend's command, he drew his wand. "Don't think I won't curse you!" he threatened.

When Mary looked back at James, she knew he meant business. But Peter did not seem – or perhaps he didn't want to – understand what it was about. Then things happened really fast. The very moment Peter set foot on the ledge, it came down with a deafening crash, right on top of Remus, burying him under a pile of rocks and debris.

Dumbledore, who had managed to force Voldemort into a tight corner, shifted his attention to Remus's corner for the split of a second, but it was all Voldemort needed. He casted an unexpected curse that made Dumbledore soar backwards through the air and crash against the wall. Voldemort did not linger to see if he killed his opponent and disapparated, shortly followed by the Death Eaters who were not unconscious or captured.

James and Lily ran towards the broken staircase to try and find a way to get to Dumbledore. Meanwhile, Elphias Doge was already checking on Hagrid and Frank and Alice had apparated next to the balcony where Peter had tumbled down to dig out Remus and Peter. And there was only one thought on Mary's mind: Sirius. But the marble stairway on her side of the balcony was in ruins. The fastest way down was to jump, but it was a very high ledge and it could break down, just like what happened to Peter. Mary walked up and down the ridge. She had only just decided she was going to jump after all when Moody apparated behind her. He was dragging along a Death Eater by the collar. "This piece of scum looking familiar to you?"

With one glance, Mary established that it was Mulciber and nodded briefly, her focus already back to find a spot to jump from the ledge.

She could feel the Auror's eyes on her. "And it was him who tortured you with the Cruciatus Curse, correct?"

She nodded again, still eyeing the ledge and finally locating a relatively safe spot.

"Great, that will earn him an one-way-ticket to Azkaban. You'll need to testify at the Wizengamot, of course… Mary?" He finally seemed to realize what she was about to do. "You cannot jump from here. It's too high."

But Mary had already jumped. When she landed on the slippery floor two seconds later, she heard something crack in her left tibia. A sharp pain confirmed her suspicion: she had broken her shin-bone. Mary, already expecting something like this to happen, bit her lip and blinked back her tears as she reached for her wand to mend the leg. Afterwards she crawled back up and ran over to Sirius, zigzagging slightly to avoid the glittering pieces of glass on the ground. When she had finally reached him, her heart hammering against her rib cage, his eyes were closed. Mary sat down on her knees, right in the puddle of blood and pulled up the end of his trousers to check on possible snake bites. To her relief, he did not seem to be bitten in his ankles, but she examined him all the way to his knees, just to be sure.

Once she had established he hadn't been bitten by a Runespoor, Mary shifted her attention to his torso. His robes were soaked with blood and water and her hands were trembling when she lifted his shirt. There were countless deep gashes on his chest. It looked like someone had whipped him with a whip made of knives. The wounds were all bleeding badly and Mary quickly cast as many styptic charms as she could.

The warmth of the Healing charms woke Sirius up. He shot her an odd dazed look and then, he grinned. Not a conscious grin, though. In fact, it seemed like he had downed two bottles of Firewhiskey on his own. "Love, I know you want me," he mumbled. "But I don't really think _now_ is the time to…"

"Shhh," Mary said, frowning. If Sirius was still able to crack jokes, he must be doing less bad than she thought. But then she realized he had lost a lot of blood. And that could cause someone to become confused, light-headed and even make it look like he was tripping on drugs or alcohol. Mary checked Sirius's pulse and established his heart was positively racing. His hands were clammy too; another sign he lost a great amount of blood, like the puddle of blood surrounding his body was not ominous enough.

Mary didc not understand. She had stopped every single haemorrhage on his chest and yet Sirius was becoming weaker by the minute. He had passed out again as well. Mary knew he was not exactly dying, but he would eventually if he didn't get advanced medical help. And that was something she could not give him in this place. Mary was just contemplating whether he would have enough strength to survive an Apparition to St. Mungo's when James crouched down next to her. His face looked as white as a sheet when he looked at Sirius. "How is he?"

"Not good," she replid. "I stopped all the bleedings on his chest, but… It doesn't seem to work, I…"

James finally realized he was standing in Sirius's blood and paled even more. "Merlin..."

Sirius opened an eye at the sound of James's voice and chuckled, but much too slow to make it sound like an actual snigger. "Hey Prongs, nice hairdo."

James frowned. "What is happening to him?"

"He's disordered because of the severe loss of blood, as you probably have noticed. James, I don't know if he's strong enough to survive an Apparition."

James wiped his soaking wet hair from his face and put a hand against Sirius's cheek. "He's burning up. You said you've Healed all the cuts, right?"

Mary nodded and gasped when Sirius's body began to jolt unexpectedly. "Jesus!" she cried, panicking. Sirius, it's gonna be alright. Please…"

"But then why… Hang on," James said, who seemed to have spotted something Mary did not. He grabbed Sirius by the shoulders and turned him to the side.

"Oh God," Mary stammered. There was another huge gash on his back, stretching all the way from his left lower back to his right shoulder. "I didn't see that."

James shot her an annoyed look. "How could you possibly have missed that is beyond me, considering the state he's in… But can you fix this?"

She quickly examined the deep gash. "It looks like it's cursed. Dark magic…" She hesitantly pointed her wand at Sirius's shoulder. "_Advertoconcido totalum_," she muttered, slowly moving the wand up and down the cut. But the bright blue light erupting from its tip did nothing to Heal the wound and just made a trembling Sirius groan instead. "Damn it!" Mary cried, flinging her wand to the floor in frustration.

James had seen enough. "Take him to St. Mungo's now. They _will_ be able to Heal him there, right?"

"Yes… Yes, I think they will," she said, not feeling all too sure about that, as she grabbed her wand from the floor. She was about to hug Sirius from behind so they could safely disapparate when her eyes shot to the other side of the Hall. "What about Remus? And Hagrid?"

"Hagrid just has a lump the size of a dragon's egg on his head and I'm about to check on Remus and Peter but honestly, they can't be doing worse than Sirius. Besides, Frank knows some basic Healing spells. It'll be fine."

Mary looked over her shoulder and saw that Dumbledore was talking to Elphias as they magically cleaned up some of the mess in the Hall. He would probably be able to Heal Remus as well if he had to. And all she wanted was to take Sirius to St. Mungo's, to Pierce. She sat down behind his head and carefully wrapped her arms around his chest. He gave another jolt and Mary shot a terrified look at James. She still wasn't convinced he would survive that Apparition. James seemed to guess what was on her mind. "He'll bleed to death right here if you don't do it," he said quietly.

"I know," she replied. "I just don't dare to think- If he dies…"

"He won't," James said reassuringly. "You heard Lily, apparently "he's strongest young man of all of us"."

A slight smile crossed her face and she kissed Sirius's forehead. "Hang in there, sweetie."

She shot James one last look, who was nodding encouragingly, and disapparated to the ER in St. Mungo's. The first thing she did once the spinning had stopped, was checking if Sirius still had a heartbeat. She ignored the terrified screams and whispers from the other witches and wizards in the waiting room as she held her fingers to his neck and wanted to thank Merlin on her bare knees when she established there was still a pulse. A faint one, but a heartbeat nevertheless.

"Merlin's beard, Woods! What happened?"

Mary looked up. Pierce was hurrying over towards them, several other ER-Healers in his wake. "We got attacked."

He immediately conjured a brancard and levitated an unconscious Sirius onto it. "What hit him?"

Mary followed Pierce and the others to the entrance doors of the ward while filling him on what happened. "And there's a large gash on his back. Dark Magic, I presume. I couldn't Heal the wound no matter what I tried and-"

They had reached the doors of the ward when Pierce held her back. "What are you doing?" she asked, surprised.

"Asking you to stay here."

She shot him an incredulous look. "You can't do that!"

"Oh, I assure you that I can. You are still on maternity leave, Mary. Not to mention you're engaged to the patient. You're too involved to act rationally."

Mary stared at him. She knew perfectly well Pierce was right. Besides, he was her boss so she had no choice but to obey his orders. But the thought of leaving Sirius's fate in the hands of other Healers was not particularly soothing. On the other hand, Pierce would be taking care of him and he probably was the best Spell Damage-Healer of the age. After another moment of silence, she nodded slowly.

He patted her gently on the shoulder. "I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

"Will he be al-?" The question, weary of hearing the possible answer, got caught up in her throat.

"You already know what my answer will be to that," Pierce replied with a meaningful look before he turned and walked through the doors of the ward.

Mary remained behind and watched him disappear from view as if it was happening in slowmotion. Of course she knew what his answer would be. It was the standard thing Healers told worried relatives and friends of any patient: "We'll do everything we can…"

She sighed, her thoughts shifting to Erin. She was grateful their baby girl did not have a clue about what happened to her parents tonight. Sirius almost died… With another shock, Mary realized she herself had been tortured and almost murdered by a Death Eater. Mulciber, of all people. At least he got arrested and would be punished for his crimes. And Erin had no idea, too young to understand anything about this war.

But her mother… Mary bit her lip, thinking of Mrs. Woods and Lily's mum who were still babysitting the kids. Would Lily have contacted them by now? Mary could only imagine how they must be feeling. Mary remained standing there for another moment before making up her mind. It would take hours before Pierce would come back and her mother deserved to know the truth. She walked off in the direction of the hospital owlery, wondering what on earth she could write to make her mother feel less worried, and not more.

End of Update

**A/N: Would you look at that: no cliffie. Happy now, JadeGirlMarauder? ;-) Anyway, this chapter was also full of action, but in the next update things will calm down a bit and get more dramatic. Oh, and another HP-character we haven't met before will make an appearance. Anyone care to**** take a guess?**

**Finally, here's a teaser of what is up next:**

_Dumbledore gave her a tiny wink and was preparing to disapparate when Mary remembered something she had wanted to tell him all along. "Wait!"_

He looked at her. "Yes?"

"_Earlier this night, at Magdalen," she said, suddenly talking very quickly. "I was battling the Death Eaters when there was an explosion. I fell and ended up somewhere in the basement. Voldemort was there, with a few Death Eaters. Mulciber was there, along with Severus Snape and another woman. They did not see me, but I could hear every word. They were talking about capturing the Order-members they had come for, and, well…"_

Dumbledore looked at her, frowning, and urged her to continue. Mary did so hesitantly. "They were speaking about capturing James and Lily. Voldemort needed them for something. Why them, Albus? Why James and Lily?"

The Headmaster stared at her for a moment. He did not speak and Mary could swear she saw a look of sheer worry and alarm in his eyes, but only a second later, it was gone. He still had not said anything and she felt forced to repeat her question. "Why James and Lily?"

After another tense moment of silence, Dumbledore said slowly: "I am not sure. I have some theories, sure enough, but… I cannot be sure yet."


	79. Back To St Mungo's

Chapter Seventy-Nine

**Chapter Seventy-Nine**

Mary returned to the ER ward over an hour later, still feeling quite dazed. She had just spent a long time staring at a note she was supposed to write to her mother. At least a dozen pieces of parchment had ended up as pellets in the waste-paper basket. Some of them were too exploratory, others not informative enough. In the end she settled on a note that briefly explained all four of them survived and that Sirius had been hospitalized, but that he was not in any mortal danger. Mary's quill shook slightly when she was writing the word mortal, because if she was being completely honest; she wasn't so sure Sirius would be alright. That huge gash on his back was a serious wound and if Pierce did not succeed in stopping the bleeding in time…

Mary had shook her head angrily to try and pull herself together. Sirius was going to be just fine, and that was that. She ended the note with a promise to pick up Erin later that day and, once again, that her mother should not worry about them too much. Mary reread the letter with a frown on her face. _She_ would not feel any less concerned if she received a note like that, but it was the best she could do at the moment. She sighed, got hold of one of the hospital's barn owls to tie the note to its talon and sent it off.

Then Mary had walked back to the ER, wondering if Pierce would be done treating Sirius anytime soon. Her mind was just briefly wandering to how Remus and Hagrid were doing when she noticed that some people in the room were staring at her. In fact, everyone in the room - both adults and a few children - was dead silent, their anxious eyes fixed on her. Mary frowned. She realized she had just apparated here out of nowhere with a severly injured man in her arms, but it was war: surely people had gotten used to persons being attacked for no apparent reason by now?

Mary made her way over to the reception desk, where a not too bright nurse called Marci Kingston was filling in some forms. "Marci?" Mary asked urgently when she had reached the desk.

Marci looked up. "Yah?" she replied in a heavy Cockney-accent.

"Why is everyone staring at me? Do I have green tentacles sprouting out of my head or something?" Mary asked, shooting an annoyed look over her shoulder at a man who was covering the eyes of his young son.

Marci's eyes slowly ran up and down her head and upper body. "Well no," she said while chewing on her bubblegum thoughtfully, looking more dense than ever and Mary couldn't help but think of Cassidy Donaldson. Marci let her bubblegum pop before she leaned in a little closer. "But ya just brought in a badly bleedin' man. And I guess the fact ya're covered in blood doesn't help much either," she added as an afterthought.

Mary stared at Marci and realized the nurse probably had a point. Her gaze dropped to her robes, which were smothered in blood and dirt. Then she looked into the mirror on the wall behind Marci; she had several black stripes of dirt on her face, there was more mascara on her cheeks and chin than her eyelashes and she had a few nasty scrapes on her left cheek. Even though she had no idea how or when that happened, she did know she looked exactly like she'd just ran a marathon and had been castigated in the process. Which, in a way, she was, but no one here needed to know that.

Without another word, Mary reached for her wand and pointed it at herself. "_Scourgify_."

Marci sniggered. "Much better. How are ya feelin'?"

"I've had better nights."

"I can imagine that. How's your baby doin'?"

"A lot better than her father, I reckon," she replied shortly. "Erin is fine," she added more nicely, realizing it was not Marci's fault they had ended up in this mess. "She wasn't with us when it eh... when it happened."

"Why did ya guys get attacked?"

"Honestly? I have no idea," Mary lied. "Look Marci, I'll be waiting by the doors of the ward. Will you let me know the _second_ you hear anything about Sirius?"

"Of course," Marci nodded and wrote down a reminder on a post-it before she got back to her forms and Mary walked to the doors of the ward, shooting an apologetic look at the father who had been covering the eyes of his son earlier on the way.

He nodded back politely, but Mary could still see the curiosity gleaming in his eyes. She ignored him and every other curious stare in the room, walked on with her head bowed and only stopped in front of the ward doors.

Mary peeked through one of the small round windows, but could not see anything particularly worrisome. She sighed and stared at a small crack in the window without seeing anything at all, rocking back and forth on her feet in an attempt to stretch her legs, which had started to tremble again. She didn't know how long she had been standing there like this, waiting, but it seemed like an eternity when she finally heard someone saying: "You might want to sit down. It could take another few hours before they'll get back to you."

Mary looked up and noticed a slender witch in her late-twenties was standing next to her. She was pale, had long and straight light blonde hair and ice blue eyes. The woman looked somewhat familiar to Mary, but she could not really place her. She was almost sure this woman did not work in St. Mungo's, because she wasn't in uniform; she just wore a set of expensive-looking blue robes that was flattering her figure immensely. But the witch didn't look that friendly. On second thought, she looked at Mary with an obvious dislike. Or was she starting to imagine things? "Thanks," Mary muttered in a reply, looking back at the door. "But I'm fine standing here."

"But you're blocking the way," the witch persisted.

Mary started to feel annoyed. It was not like this woman worked in this hospital and she wasn't really blocking the doors anyway. Besides, she could jump aside in a second if she had to. Mary frowned at her. "No, I'm not. And what's it to you anyway?"

She expected the woman to look insulted or even angry, but she looked merely amused. "Didn't Sirius ever mention anything about me to you?"

"Eh no," Mary replied, eyeing the witch suspiciously. She wondered how Sirius knew this woman; she was good-looking. With a jealous pang in her heart, she suddenly saw an image of him kissing her passionately in a distant room in the Auror Office. Mary rolled her eyes at her own - probably misplaced – jealousy and asked in what she hoped would be a polite tone: "What did you say your name was again?"

"I didn't say," the witch replied in a drawling voice. "But I am Narcissa Malfoy. Née _Black_."

She wouldn't have bothered to mention her maiden name, because Mary had finally recognized her. Narcissa was a few years older and in Mary's memories from her first year at Hogwarts, she spent most of her days hanging around Lucius Malfoy's neck, laughing scornfully whenever he or Bellatrix cursed younger students (Sirius in particular) in the corridors. Mary had no idea what Narcissa – a Death Eater's wife - was doing at St. Mungo's, but she sincerely doubted she had come to comfort her because of Sirius. Concluding that she should be on her guard, Mary fixed her gaze on the doors once more. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you," she said. "But you know Gryffindors always erase every memory of any Slytherin as soon as possible."

"I wish I could return the favor, but that seems hardly impossible with the way you've been working yourself into my family."

Mary realized Narcissa was trying to taunt her, but she ignored the obvious sneer and asked: "Narcissa, why are you here?"

"My son, Draco," she replied after a pause. "He has laryngitis."

Mary looked at her, her eyebrows raised. "You took him to a hospital for something as innocent as laryngitis?" She tutted in mock reprimand. "Don't you know that the charm to Heal laryngitis can be found in every basic handbook for housewives?"

She lifted her chin defiantly. "Draco deserves the best medical care."

Mary tried hard not to smile, but she coul not prevent the corners of her mouth from curling up. "Oooh, and you think your magic is too mediocre to successfully cast a simple charm like that? Interesting..."

Narcissa flushed. "How _dare_ you!" she hissed. "To take that tone with someone like me. You should be scrubbing the hospital floors with the house-elves instead of…" she paused and took a deep breath to get a grip on herself. "What I'm saying is… You may think you've wrapped my cousin around your little finger, but one day soon he'll realize the value of having a family like his own."

Mary had started to lean from one leg on the other in an attempt to stop the shaking. "His friends are his family now. And besides, he's engaged to me, so-"

"-You've been engaged for almost two years and still aren't married."

"We would have been ages ago if it weren't for you guys and You-Know-Who being so keen on marching in on our wedding to murder everyone."

A small nasty smile played around Narcissa's lips. "All the more reason to keep ruining your wedding plans, then."

Mary sighed impatiently, shifting to her other leg once more. She was trying hard to remain polite, but the truth of the matter was that this had been a really rough night and the last thing she needed was to be insulted and threatened by someone like Narcissa Malfoy. Mary had not responded to the last sneer, but apparently Narcissa had no intention of giving up on whatever she was trying to achieve. "And to think you two have a baby together… You even dared to gave this unlawful brat _his_ name? It's a scandal, that's what it is."

Mary was still trembling on her legs, but it no longer had anything to do with the after-effects of a double Cruciatus Curse. It was because she started to feel more and more angry. Narcissa could say whatever she wanted about her and she would not care less, but she had _no_ right to insult Erin.

Mary continued to stare at the door, inwardly begging Pierce to interrupt them. Narcissa, however, seemed to be on a roll. "If Sirius survives, he will come to his senses soon enough," she continued confidently, more to herself than to Mary. "He's a clever guy. He'll figure out where his true loyalties lie before the end."

"He already has," Mary replied through clenched teeth, trying to resist the temptation to pull out a string of Narcissa's shiny hair.

She laughed coldly. "Because you forced this ignominous child upon him? Please. Personally I don't understand why you haven't run off yet. I know I would. After all, dirty blood or not, you Mudbloods must have the same maternal instincts."

"What are you talking about?" Mary asked tightly, clenching her fists at her side.

For the first time that night, the two of them were really looking at each other and Mary immediately noticed the coldness of Narcissa's eyes. "When the Dark Lord takes over the wizarding world, there will be no mercy for Mudbloods and their offspring, magical or not. You are below us Purebloods in so many ways-"

"-Shut up," Mary muttered, grinding her teeth while she silently started to count from one to ten.

"-Completely unworthy of using the magical arts. You should, and will be, working as slaves when the Dark Lord finally-"

"-Shut up," Mary hissed, now biting her lip so hard it had started to bleed.

"-So if you are the tiniest bit smarter than I think you are, you go home right now, take that filfthy Mudblood child of yours and r-"

"-Just shut up!" Mary yelled and before she realized what she was doing, she had smacked Narcissa hard against the cheek.

Narcissa gasped and clapped a hand to her glowing face. She was glaring at Mary but, at least for the moment, appeared to be speechless. Mary glared back, panting, now positively shaking with anger. "Ever insult my daughter in my presence again and I _swear_ I will kill you."

"You had no right," Narcissa hissed, still holding her hand to her cheek. "Oh, you are going to regret this. I will report-"

But before she could finish and execute that threat, Mary was dragged away from the scene by someone. She had no idea who it was until the person had pushed her against the wall of a nearby quiet hallway. "Ching-Lu," she said, looking surprised.

The person who had prevented her from hitting Narcissa again, was indeed her closest Spell-Damage colleague. And she was not looking pleased. "What in Merlin's name do you think you were doing?"

Mary rubbed her tired face with a trembling hand. "She had consistently been bugging me for about twenty minutes."

"But that was Narcissa Malfoy."

"She was insulting me, and Sirius, _and_ Erin."

"I don't care if she was insulting the Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards! The Malfoys, Mary, the _Malfoys_! They donate countless Galleons to the St. Mungo's Research Program every year. Oh, Pierce is going to scalp you for this."

Mary let her head fall back to the cool wall and stared at the cracked ceiling. "Pierce will have to cut me some slack. I might have been temporarily insane because of what happened to my boyfriend but all the same, I can't say I did not enjoy smacking Mrs. Malfoy."

The corners of Ching-Lu's mouth twitched. "I'd have to agree it was about time someone would. Bringing her son in for a simple laryngitis." She shook her head. "Anyway, I came to talk to you about Sirius."

Mary jerked her head up. "How is he?"

Ching-Lu shot her a look. "He'll live. But Mary, he lost _a lot_ of blood. And the curse that struck him… You guys really must have pissed off those Death Eaters to have them rack him the way they did. What happened?"

She sighed. "Didn't he tell you that?"

"He was unconscious when you brought him in, remember? But you weren't."

Ching-Lu shot her another perceptive look and Mary felt cornered. There was no way she could tell the truth without jeopordizing the secrecy of the Order, but she did realize Piece and Ching-Lu were obliged to fill in forms on what injuries Sirius had and how it had happened. She sighed again and decided to win some time until she and Sirius would get a chance to get their stories straight. "Look, can we discuss that later? I really want to see Sirius."

Ching-Lu nodded, dragging her along by the arm, but gently this time. "Of course, but you should know he's not awake yet. We gave him a high dose of Painkilling Solution to ease his pain. Not to mention a strong Sleeping Draft to let him regain his strength. But I'll take you to the Spell Damage-department."

Mary paused. "Spell Damage?"

"Yes, that was an extremely nasty Dark Magic curse. You know, that cut on his back?"

"B-but," she stammered, "I tried everything to Heal that wound with spells, but nothing worked!"

Ching-Lu shot her a look. "Didn't I say extremely nasty? You couldn't possibly have fixed that one on your own. Pierce needed five of us and we all had to cast the charm at the exact same time." When Mary continued to stare at her with an open mouth, she laughed. "Like I said: _nasty_. But the wound healed nicely in the end. Didn't leave a scar or anything. Come on, I'll take you to his room."

Mary and Ching-Lu walked side by side through those corridors both of them had come to know like the back of their hand. They avoided crossing the ER by taking a detour through the basement corridor that led to the larder and the thought of a furious Narcissa filing a complaint about her slowly faded into the background. She was going to see Sirius. He had survived, was going to be fine and she would be holding his hand only a few minutes from now.

They walked on in silence. Mary sped up a little when she and Ching-Lu were crossing the Potion and Plant Poisoning-department. The closer she got to Sirius, the more she was aching to see him. But the very moment they rounded the corner into an elongated Spell Damage-corridor, Mary got distracted by something after all. Or someone, because the person sitting on a bench in front of Sirius's room was no other than Albus Dumbledore. Torn between feeling annoyed that he had arrived before her and kind of curious to find out why he was here, Mary nudged Ching-Lu. "You said Sirius was still asleep, right?"

"On another planet more likely," she replied, grinning.

Mary smiled at her. "Great. Then it's alright, you can go. I'll go see him when I'm ready."

She looked over at Dumbledore and Ching-Lu followed her gaze. "Hang on, isn't that the Headmaster of Hogwarts?"

"Yep."

"'Yep' what, you mean you guys know him personally?"

When she nodded, Ching-Lu's jaw dropped. "Albus Dumbledore. Seriously."

Mary smiled. "Yeah. In short, Sirius and I stayed in touch with him after we graduated from Hogwarts."

Ching-Lu raised her eyebrows. "No kidding. Wow… You guys really do hang out with one of the wisest and influential wizards of our time. Oh well, I should get going." She pulled a face. "Mrs. Norberry is having imaginary poltergeists casting Bat-Bogey Hexes at her again."

This time Mary did laugh. Mrs. Norberry was a grumbling eldery lady who had been in and out of St. Mungo's for over a year now. She claimed she was being haunted and repeatedly jinxed by one or more poltergeists every time, but everyone knew she was just feeling lonely and that the only one who was casting the hexes was Mrs. Norberry herself (her wand showed the proof whenever they cast _Priori Incantato_ on it). Unfortunately, Mrs. Norberry did get hurt whenever she jinxed herself and needed treatment, to the annoyance of every Spell Damage-Healer in the hospital. "Good luck with that," Mary said, shooting her an empathetic look. "You know what helps? Pick up an empty glass from her nightstand and carefully carry it over to the window. Then toss the glass outside and tell her the poltergeist has left the room. That usually calms her down."

Ching-Lu rolled her eyes. "Crazy old bat…" she muttered. "But thanks, I'll make sure to come back later."

She walked off in the other direction and Mary lingered until she disappeared from view before she made her way over to Dumbledore. "Hi," she said simply while sitting down on the bench beside him.

"Good evening Mary," Dumbledore said before glancing down at his pocket watch. "Or night, actually. It's almost twelve o'clock."

He was smiling at her, but his smile could not conceal the fact that his face was lined with exhaustion and concern. Ignoring the question of what Dumbledore was doing right in front of Sirius's room at this very moment, Mary asked about something else she could not stop thinking about. "How are Remus and Hagrid?"

"They're alright," he nodded. "Hagrid sprained his ankle and Remus had several broken ribs and a minor concussion, but nothing I could not take care of myself."

Mary heaved a big sigh of relief. "Thank God no one else died." She had momentarily forgotten about Zabini, but the image of Moody putting him out of his misery with the Killing Curse came back with force. "I'm sorry about Zabini," she said quietly.

Dumbledore nodded sadly. "So am I. Sean was a good friend and a brave man."

"I could not help him."

"I heard you did everything in your power to Heal him."

"But it wasn't good enough." she said, failing to conceal a note of bitterness in her voice.

Dumbledore shot her a close look. "He also would have died even if the others had taken him to St. Mungo's straight away. As far as I know, the venom of a mutated Runespoor becomes incurable after only fifteen minutes. And I am pretty confident Sean was aware of that too."

Mary looked up at him. He shot her a meaningful look and she smiled sadly. "Thanks. Ehm… not to be rude, Albus, but why exactly are you here?"

"Sirius was the one with the most severe injuries and I wanted to check on him. And you, I might add. I understand you had an unpleasant encounter with Mulciber earlier tonight?"

"I did. Again…"

"What happened?"

"Well, you know me and Mulciber," she shrugged. "Never have been the best of pals."

Dumbledore made a typical noise and if Mary was not mistaken, he was stifling a chuckle. Which was understandable, considering he probably remembered how Mary paid Mulciber back after he had poisoned her in her fifth year. "Yes, you two were quite the pair… Alastor said he tortured you with the Cruciatus Curse, though."

"He did. Twice."

Dumbledore made a reproachful sound. "You will have testify at his trial. But if you do, I guarantee he will be sent to Azkaban."

"I already told Moody I'll do it."

"Very good," Dumbledore nodded and he looked at the door of Sirius's room. "He is not going to return to the land of the living anytime soon, is he?"

"According to my colleague, he'll be out for at least another few hours."

Dumbledore got up from his chair. "Then I suppose it's probably better to return to Hogwarts and take care of a few other things before I come back. I assume you're still here in the morning?"

"Naturally."

Dumbledore gave her a tiny wink and was preparing to disapparate when Mary remembered something she had wanted to tell him all along. "Wait!"

He looked at her. "Yes?"

"Earlier this night, at Magdalen," Mary said, suddenly talking very quickly. "I was battling the Death Eaters when there was an explosion. I fell and ended up somewhere in the basement. Voldemort was there, with a few Death Eaters. Mulciber was there, along with Severus Snape and another woman. They did not see me and I could hear every word. They were talking about capturing the Order-members they had come for, and, well…"

Dumbledore looked at her, frowning, and urged her to continue. Mary did so hesitantly. "They were speaking about capturing James and Lily. Voldemort needed them for something. Why them, Albus? Why James and Lily?"

Dumbledore stared at her for a moment. He did not speak and Mary could swear she saw a look of sheer worry and alarm in his eyes, but only a second later, it had disappeared. He still had not said anything and she felt forced to repeat her question. "Why James and Lily?"

After another tense moment of silence, Dumbledore said slowly: "I'm not sure. I have some theories, sure enough, but… I cannot be sure yet."

"Will Lily and James be safe?"

"For now they will, as we all are," Dumbledore said. "But I shall need to discuss this matter with them as soon as possible. Thank you for telling me this, Mary."

And he disapparated with a soft pop before Mary could have said "You're welcome". She stared at the spot where Dumbledore had been standing only a few seconds ago and did not feel any better. She had been _so_ sure that he could have set her worried mind at ease, but he had left her behind with even more questions than before. Why was Voldemort chasing James and Lily? Did they have any idea he was after them? More importantly: why did Dumbledore know about this? He sure looked like he knew exactly what she was talking about, even though her rambling had sounded terribly confusing to her own ears.

Mary sighed, realizing there was no way her questions would be answered tonight. All she wanted to do now was to bury her face in Sirius's neck. She got up from the bench and walked to the door to Sirius's room. With her hand on the door handle, she paused for a moment, forcing herself to reason that whatever would be happening to them in the future, it could not possibly get any worse than this.

End of Update

A/N: If only she knew… Sorry about this somewhat slow chapter, but it's all a build up to the next one that will contain a conversation that is crucial for the end. Am I confusing you guys already? Haha, anyway: I was a little disappointed no one guessed Narcissa was making an appearance, but I have to admit there were no clues whatsoever that it would be her.

Finally, a little teaser of what's coming next. Enjoy! –Mara.

_After the meeting, most of the Order-members disapparated home immediately, but Sirius and his friends stayed behind. Mary walked down the stairs of the pub with an arm wrapped around Lily. The girls were talking quietly in urgent voices, but Sirius could not hear what it was about. He was currently being assisted by Peter and Remus as he carefully descended the stairs. James had just passed them with a grim look on his face. He hurried down the stairs and walked on without looking back at Peter, who had just called him. Sirius was just wondering what James was up to when he saw that his friend cornering Mary. "You know something."_

"What are you talking about?" Mary called out, looking surprised.

"What did you hear that night at Oxford?" James repeated, glaring at her. He was now standing right in front of Mary, literally blocking her against the wall.

Lily had noticed this too and frowned. "James, what are you…?"

"I _need__ to know, Lil. Why us, Mary? __Why__ is Voldemort after us?"_

"I-I don't know," Mary stammered, now looking positively scared.

"Don't make me repeat it again. What exactly did you hear in that basement?"


	80. Suspicious Minds

Chapter Eighty

**Chapter Eighty**

Sirius was having an awful night. Or perhaps it was already morning, he couldn't tell for sure. All he knew was that he was in pain. The sedating effect of the Painkilling Solution was slowly fading away and although he had not fully gained consiousness yet (he was drifting somewhere between being awake and a dreamless sleep), it already felt like he had been run over by a steam roller. Every breath was a challenge to make his aching chest rise and fall without overburdening his lungs and stomach muscles too much. He had not felt this racked since that Quidditch match against Slytherin in fourth year when one of the Slytherin beaters hit a bludger against his head that made him crash into the back of the grandstand and (painfully) tumble down all the way to the ground.

Sirius had broken practially every bone in his body and at that time, he was sure he could not possibly be in more pain but right now, he would have taken another tumble down those stands any time. He suspected the second he opened his eyes, the pain would be even worse or, in a way, more definite.

On the other hand, he had survived the night and was feeling more concerned about his friends by the minute. Would James and Lily have come out of the battle unharmed? Or Remus, was he doing alright? Sirius had jumped in front of him when Remus's Death Eater succeeded in sending him though the air and made him crash into a large glass closet. Sirius did not get a chance to check because from that moment on, he had been too busy duelling his own and Remus's Death Eater, and he had no idea if those fragments of glass had killed his friend. And then there was Peter, who vanished the minute they had set foot on Oxford. Had he been captured by the Death Eaters?

And Mary… If Sirius was not mistaken, she had come down to Oxford as well, even though he wished she would have stayed with Erin. He could vaguely remember that James pulled her back when she tried to climb down the balcony and - when the battle between Dumbledore and Voldemort had ended – that she tried to cure him, but he did not know what happened to her afterwards, or where she or the others had brought him. He was laying in a bed, he could tell that, but where?

Sirius opened his eyes and winced when he felt a sharp pain on the lower left side of his chest. He took a moment to pull himself together before he looked around the room. He was in a bright (it _was_ morning) and wide room that looked out over Hyde Park. There was a large painting on one of the light caramel-coloured walls. The man in the frame had the curliest moustache Sirius had ever seen and was writing on a long scroll of parchment, but he looked up when Sirius was watching him and winked. Sirius arched his eyebrows; the man shrugged and got back to his work. Sirius's eyes wandered around the rest of the room (a limegreen bathrobe was hanging from a clothes-hanger on the door and a tiny cactus stood on the window-still) before resting upon the girl on a chair on the left side of his bed.

Mary was still asleep. She had crawled up on her chair with her legs pulled up to her chest. Her head was resting on her knees and a few locks of her long brown hair had fallen over her face. Her left hand was dangling from her chair; it looked like it had rested on the bed or his hand for a long time. Sirius reached out to place her hand back on her knees. He had not meant for her to wake up, but her eyes shot open at the merest touch of his fingers. They looked at each other for a moment and then she cried out: "You're awake!"

Sirius did not get a chance to say "Good morning" back, because Mary had already jumped on top of the bed to hug him. And it wasn't like Sirius was not happy to embrace her – on the contrary, last night he would have given anything to feel her in his arms again – but he already was in pain and Mary's full weight resting on his chest did not exactly made him feel better. "H-Hey," he said hoarsely while trying to push her back up as gently as possible. "Could you just… not do that?"

She shot him an anxious look. "What's wrong?"

Sirius tried to smile. "It's not that I'm not happy to see you too, but you… you're kind of crushing my chest here and I…"

"Oh God, I'm so sorry," Mary said, sliding off the bed to sit back down on her chair.

This was not exactly what Sirius had in mind, because he did want to feel her close to him. Mary still looked a little anxious too. Did she think he was mad at her? He didn't understand and reached for her hand to show he wasn't angry and he thought she got the message. At least she didn't look frightened anymore when she whispered: "How're you feeling?"

Sirius thought for a moment. "Remember how I looked after that Quidditch match in fourth year?"

"Yes. Everyone thought you died in that fall."

"Well, like that," heeplied before adding as an afterthought: "Multiplied by ten, I think."

"Did the effect of the Painkilling Solution run out?" Mary asked, getting up from her chair. She started to examine his upper body while repeatedly asking: "Does this hurt?". Sirius let her, occasionally replying "Yes" or shaking his head and although his chest was wrapped up in bandages, he could still feel the warmth and softness of her hands. However, when she gently pressed on the left side of his ribcage, which had been throbbing and aching for the last few hours, he almost screamed out in pain. "Ack- don't _ever_ do that again!"

Mary ignored his annoyed remark, walked to the end of the bed and picked up his chart. "Ah yes of course, it makes sense that side hurts the most," she mumbled and flicked to the next page.

"What does?" he asked gingerly, massaging his throbbing side.

She looked up. "You had – among other things - a ruptured spleen, caused by a powerful blow of some kind. Could be a curse, I reckon… It says here that Pierce Healed your spleen, but that part of your ribcage will remain extremely sore for another while."

She all said this in a business-like voice that was so unlike the Mary he knew that Sirius couldn't help but ask: "Was this my fiancée or a Healer speaking?"

The ghost of a smile crossed her face. "Your fiancée spent most of the night crying next to your bed and wouldn't be able to explain anything about your condition without bursting into tears again at least once. But when I look at your chart from a Healer's point of view, I cannot conclude anything else than that you, my friend, are an exceptionally interesting case."

Sirius's eyes twinkled and he almost grinned. "_Interesting_, really now?"

She rolled her eyes. "And not because you're so good-looking."

He actually sniggered this time, but winced at the sharp pang that followed and Mary, noticing his twitch, looked concerned. "I could cast a light Sedating Charm. It'll make you a little groggy, but…"

"No, I'm fine," Sirius said, repositioning slightly without making any abrupt movements. He looked at Mary again and all of the sudden, he got overwhelmed by a longing to hold Erin in his arms. "Where's our girl?"

She looked up from his chart for a brief moment to meet his eyes. "At home with my mum. And so are Harry and Neville. Sirius, you've got to tell me… What went wrong at Oxford?"

Sirius sighed, trying to reflect on what happened. "Well…" he said thoughtfully. "I suppose you could say it went wrong from the very beginning. The Death Eaters knew we were coming."

"They were tipped off by the spy?"

"Likely, but I think Voldemort would have put several Death Eaters on guard anyway. We got attacked by them and Dementors when we apparated in the courtyard. But we weren't outnumbered and for a while, luck seemed to be on our side. However, when we entered the central Hall, all hell broke loose. There were at least dozen more Death Eaters waiting for us. We duelled as fast as we could, but they were just with too many…"

Mary opened her mouth to interrupt but he held up a hand, determined to finish his story before he would ask her about Remus and the others. "I was still fighting my own Death Eater when I jumped in to protect Remus who had been disarmed and attacked by his opponent. I still thought I could duel them both and be alright... I remember looking over at James who was fighting an aggressive battle against Snape, and-"

This time Mary did succeed in interrupting him. "-How did you know it was Severus?"

"His mask had fallen off," Sirius replied impatiently. "And don't you agree it's about time to stop calling him by his first name? He is one of Voldemort's confirmed toy dogs after all."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "And since when did you stop calling him Snivellus?"

"We're not in Hogwarts anymore."

She sighed. "About time. So what happened next?"

Sirius squeezed his eyes shut while waiting for another series of aches to pass before he continued. "As I was saying, I was doing fine with duelling two Death Eaters alone, but someone else apparated behind me and I didn't notice her."

"Her?" Mary asked. "You knew who it was?"

Sirius nodded. "My dearest cousin. Bellatrix," he added darkly, seeing Mary's eyes widening in shock. "She attacked me from behind, the coward that she is. I don't recall exactly what she did, but I reckon she used fragments from the glass cabinet Remus crashed into and sent them straight at me."

"That makes sense," she answered, biting her lip. "You were bleeding to death."

"I cannot really remember, but I doubt I was _bleeding_ that badly."

"You were. People who have lost a great amount of blood get highly confused and start raving."

"So?"

"You hadn't lost consciousness yet when I examined your chest, and you said 'I know you want me, but I don't think now is the time to…'"

She lifted her eyebrows and he couldn't help but snort. "That does sound like something I would say."

"Exactly," Mary said, smiling slightly as she put the clipboard back in its standard.

"How are the others doing?" Sirius asked, his thoughts once again drifting towards Remus.

Mary shot him a long look and he just knew she was trying to determine if she should him everything at this point. "Tell me. It will hurt just as much if I find out tomorrow."

She sighed. "Remus and Hagrid are fine. They had some minor injuries, but nothing life-threatening."

"And James, Peter?!"

"None of them ended up as badly hurt as you."

Sirius heaved a sigh of relief and had to put a hand on his chest to stop the aches that followed. He looked at Mary, who was still watching him with great concern. "Mare," he asked almost pleadingly. "Why did you come tonight? I thought we agreed that one of us would stay with Erin in case…"

She pushed her hair back from her face. "Zabini informed me and Lily that you were outnumbered and asked us for help."

He frowned. "That doesn't make any sense. It was Zabini who emphasized to spread the risk, as he likes to call it. He had no right… I will have a word with him at the first Order-meeting, and-"

He stopped talking when he noticed Mary's expression. She was staring down at her hands, but he could still see she looked grave and sorrowful. "Mare," he whispered. "What…?"

"He… I'm sorry, but…"

"Dead?" Sirius said, looking gobsmacked. He didn't understand. Zabini, who, besides Moody, was one of the best Aurors of the age, had been killed? The wizard who had successfully chased down almost the entire Dark wizard-community of Brazil had been murdered by the Death Eaters? It just didn't make any sense. "How?" he stammered.

"He got bitten by a mutated Runespoor."

She swallowed audibly and Sirius – still trying to grasp that Zabini was no longer alive - stared at her. He noticed she was on the verge of tears and he wanted nothing more than comfort her. "Come over here," he said, but she did not respond. "Baby…" he repeated softly.

Mary finally looked up. "B-but your chest…"

He smiled sadly. "My other side is just fine. Come on."

She remained standing at the end of his bed for another moment before she made up her mind and climbed onto the right side of the bed. She snuggled up close to him with her head in that small space between his neck and shoulder that seemed to fit only her and Sirius wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face in his neck like she always did when she was feeling sad. "I couldn't help him," she said in a muffled voice. "I was too late and Moody had to use the Killing Curse on him before my eyes."

He put his chin on her head. "That must have been terrifying."

She just gave a quiet sob as a reply and Sirius gently stroke her back for a while. A disturbing thought was coming to his mind and for the moment, he did not really know what to think of it. Zabini died in a battle, yet _another_ Order-member that had been killed in the line of duty. So far, the only one of their group who had died was Brice, but there were hardly any other Order-members left. How long would it take before another attack took place? And who of them would be the next to die? The thought of losing his friends or Mary made him feel worse than he already did. He realized things had to change, and fast, before it would be too late. He had just opened his mouth to speak when he heard Mary whisper: "Why don't we run away?"

Sirius was so taken aback by her proposition that he could not think of saying anything sensible. "Sorry?"

She looked up, tears shimmering in her blue eyes. "I'm saying we take Erin and run. It's not a crazy thought, we could start a life somewhere else. This Order-business is getting far too dangerous. I'm sure Albus would understand."

"But what about our friends? Could you leave them to their fate? Because I sure cannot."

Sirius knew there was an admonitory note in his voice and if he was not mistaken, he saw a flicker of fear and guilt in Mary's eyes. She closed them for a moment and said: "Of course not. But think about it. One can only cheat death so many times. Last night, Erin almost lost both her parents, and I-"

This time he interrupted her. "_What?_"

She sighed. "You're not the only one who escaped death at Magdalen."

"What happened?" he asked sharply, trying to stay calm, but the news that Mary almost died had instantly doubled his heart rate.

"I was tortured by a Death Eater. Cruciatus… Twice. And if Alice hadn't gotten to that distant corridor in time, he would have killed me."

"'He' who?"

"Mulciber," she replied quietly, fiddling with her engagement ring while avoiding his gaze.

Sirius only just restrained himself from ripping his blanket apart (although in all honesty, he probably could not have done it anyway considering the pain he was in) and snorted angrily instead. He knew all about Mary's past with Mulciber and hated him almost as much as he despised Snape. "I'll kill him," he growled, and he realized how much he sounded like the dog that was his Animagus-form.

Mary shot him a look. "You don't have to."

"He's already dead?" he asked in a hopeful voice.

"No."

"Oh," he said, disappointed.

"Even better. Moody arrested him. I'll have to testify, but there's a good chance he'll be sent to Azkaban."

"Great, just what the git deserves." He shot a concerned look at Mary. "And you, are you alright?"

She shrugged against his chest. "My muscles will be sore for days but other than that…Bright and shiny, that's what I am."

Sirius could not help but smile over her sarcasm in their current situation. In a weird way, it seemed to relativize the horrors they had been through. However, it did not make Sirius change his mind. On the contrary, Mulciber torturing and attempting to kill Mary was just another reason to do what he was about to ask from her. He enjoyed the touch of her fingers softly grazing his neck for a moment before sayin: "I'm going to ask you something and I need you to listen carefully, understand?"

She lifted her head and shot him a weary look. "What do you mean?"

Sirius reached for her hand with the engagement ring and started to stroke her ring finger thoughtfully. "When I asked you to marry me almost two years ago, I made a promise. Not only to you, but to myself. I vowed that I would protect you from any harm, no matter how tough this war would get."

"Sirius…"

"And for a long time, I believed we would be alright. Sure, we lost people we loved, but not once did I think I could lose you. But then Esha Ness happened. You almost died, and I knew I had failed in protecting you."

"But that was not your-"

"Love please," he said quietly, still caressing her hand. "Hear me out. And last night, even though I specifically asked you to stay home, you came to Magdalen and it almost happened again."

"If I had not come to Oxford, you would have died!"

Sirius laced his fingers through hers and looked into her eyes. "I realize that. You saved my life tonight and I owe you-"

"-Don't be ridiculous-"

"-I _owe_ you," he repeated, raising his voice. "And I'm about to repay you."

Mary stared at them with a terrified look in her eyes. "What are you saying?"

Sirius closed his eyes. "I can no longer promise nothing bad is going to happen. I'll still do anything in my power to protect us, _that_ I promise you, but it's just… Too much has changed."

A tear trickled down her cheek. "Y-you want to break off our engagement?"

He shook his head while raising his other hand to wipe the tear away. "There's nothing I'd love more than marrying you once we're out of this mess. But…" He hesitated. "There _is_ something I need you to promise me."

"What?" she asked, looking slightly relieved.

"A few minutes ago you talked about running away. And I want you to… No, listen to me Mary," Sirius said when she was about to retort him, "When I die, or… Or if something else happens to me, I want you to take Erin and run. You owe that to our little girl."

She was vehemently shaking her head now. "I'm never going to leave you, Sirius. You can't ask that from me."

He closed his eyes and swallowed in an attempt to make the lump in his throat disappear. "I can, and I am. I keep hoping that we'll be fine, but if not… We need to discuss this matter in case our worst case scenario comes true. Don't you see we need to have a plan B? For Erin?"

Mary nodded slowly. "I get what you're saying and I think you're right, but…"

Sirius cut her off again, because he had to hear her say it. "Promise me, Mare," he said, cupping her face and forcing her to look at him.

"But-"

"-Promise me!"

"I promise," she whispered. "But on one condition…"

"And that is?"

"That if it's the other way around, you will do the same."

Sirius did not reply immediately and looked away. He had never taken into account that Erin might have to grow up without a mother instead of having no father. Not really, he'd always – even now when he just heard that Mulciber almost killed her – thought he would be the one to die, not Mary. But he had to admit that last night showed that in their situation, everything was possible. He might have to raise their daughter on his own one day. The thought alone creeped him out, but he was sure Remus and the others would help him. Sirius looked at her, smiled sadly and nodded. "I promise."

Over the next few days, neither Sirius nor Mary brought up the subject of their little talk again. It seemed they had silently agreed to keep their agreement to themselves. Sirius had to admit that although he sincerely hoped it would never get to that solution, he was glad that they sorted out how to handle things, should something happen to one of them.

He had to stay in St. Mungo's for another week and when Pierce finally decided to send him home, it was only after he had given Mary clear instructions on how to Heal and keep an eye on his injuries. Sirius was still weak and spent most of the day stretched out on the couch. He read the Daily Prophet from cover to cover and, when there wasn't a page left to read, he dived into Witch Weekly and sometimes even one of Mary's Muggle magazines. But he remained bored out of his wits. The only time he really enjoyed himself was when his friends paid him a visit or when he was taking care of Erin. Lately she had started to blurt out parts of words and he was trying to learn her to say "Da" first instead of "Mu".

Meanwhile, Pierce had strictly forbidden him to attend any Order-meetings in the first week. Sirius had to hear everything from Mary and he was aching to get back into action, even though his ailing body wasn't quite working along with his spirit. This greatly annoyed him now that the Order was, besides organizing Zabini's funeral, having meetings almost every night. Mary had filled him in on accidentally overhearing Voldemort's plans to hunt down James, Lily and Harry. No one knew why, but Sirius was more than alarmed. If Voldemort himself was after someone, they usually did not survive long.

The Order-members were aware of this terrifying fact and did everything in their power to find a suitable hiding place for the Potters. And, as it happened, for the Longbottoms, because Dumbledore had reason to believe they were in danger as well. The first Order-meeting Sirius was able to attend (he practically forced Mary to take him along by Side-Along Apparition) was all about planning how and when James and Lily would be moving to a small cottage in Godric's Hollow which, according to Dumbledore, would be the perfect hiding place. Lily was more reticent than usual. She looked pale and was nervously twisting a lock of her long auburn hair around her finger as she listened to Dumbledore.

James on the other hand fired one burning question after the other at Dumbledore ("What does Voldemort want from us? How can you be so sure we'll be safe in Godric's Hollow?"). At times he appeared almost aggressive, even towards Sirius. And although he perfectly understood what was going through his best friend's mind (after all, his family was in danger), he tried forcing him to calm down. And that was a first according to Remus, who stated it was usually James who placated Sirius, and not the other way around.

After the meeting, most of the Order-members disapparated home immediately, but Sirius and his friends stayed behind. Mary had walked down the stairs of the pub with her arm wrapped around Lily. The girls were talking quietly in urgent voices, but Sirius couldn't hear what their conversation was about. He was currently being assisted by Peter and Remus as he carefully descended the stairs. James had just passed them with a grim look on his face. He hurried down the stairs and walked on without looking back at Peter, who had just called him. Sirius was just wondering what James was up to when he saw his friend cornering Mary. "You know something."

"What are you talking about?" She called out, looking surprised.

"What did you hear that night at Oxford?" James repeated, glaring at her. He was now standing right in front of Mary, blocking her against the wall.

Lily noticed this too and frowned. "James, what are you…?"

"I _need_ to know, Lil. Why us, Mary? _Why_ is Voldemort after us?"

"I-I don't know," Mary stammered, now looking positively scared.

"What exactly did you hear in that basement?"

"I already told you everything I know, and- Ow!"

James had grabbed Mary roughly by her arm and Sirius, who had just made it to the bottom of the stairs, got overwhelmed with a sudden rush of anger. "James!" he bellowed.

But James did not seem to hear him. His hazel eyes were glinting with fury. "Or did you just tell us what you _wanted_ to share?"

"What?!"

Sirius was still trying to get to Mary and James. He was now only being supported by Peter, because Remus had already hurried over to the others. "James, be reasonable," he said, pulling him off Mary. "You are not yourself tonight. Now _calm down_."

"James, please," Lily pleaded, crying now.

James ignored them and continued to glare at Mary. "Did you sell your soul to Voldemort, Mary? Because if you did, I swear upon my son's life…"

But James didn't get the chance to finish that sentence, because Sirius had finally reached him and did not hesitate for a second. He dragged his friend back by the collar of his robes to push him against the wall, drew his wand and pointed it straight at his neck. "Enough!" he growled, and once again his dogform was speaking through him.

James stared back and for a moment, Sirius could clearly see the pride and temper of a stag shining in his eyes, before his gaze was softening slightly. "But it's one of us, Padfoot. The spy _has_ to be one of us…"

"I know that," Sirius said heavily, shocked at the depressed expression in James's eyes. "But it's _not_ Mary. You're assaulting the wrong person."

There was a tense moment of silence, in which Sirius and James stared at each other. Lily's quiet sobs were all that could be heard before a desperate-looking James asked: "Then who is?"

End of Update

**A/N ****Not exactly a cliffie, considering we **_**all**_** know who the real Order-spy is. Unfortunately, none of the characters (minus the rat and Voldemort) in my story know... :( I hope you guys liked this chapter anyway, don't forget to leave a review when you drop by! –Mara**

P.S. Finally, a little teaser from the next update:

_But Mary was done talking, done with being accused of crimes she would not even think of ever committing. She would rather die herself than ever betraying her friends and she thought everyone knew that. But, apparently she had been mistaken. She pushed Remus aside and blocked James against the wall like he had done earlier. "Fine Potter," she said using his last name, which was something she had _never_ done before. "You want proof? I'll give you proof."_

She stepped back and roughly pulled up the sleeves of her robes. Glaring at him, her eyes glinting with fury and indignation, she thrust both of her wrists in his face. "There, happy now?"

James said nothing and stared down at the floor. This time it was Peter who wrapped his arms around her. "Calm down," he said quietly, pulling her back. Mary let him, but her eyes remained fixed on James. Her voice quivering with anger and emotion, she said the one thing she would never thought possible for as long she had known him. "I don't have the Dark Mark on me. My forearms are clean, as is my conscience. I'm going now, I have to pick up Erin at my parents. But thanks James, I now know how you feel about me. And I don't think I ever want to see you again. "


	81. Sirius, the Conspiracist

Chapter Eighty-One

**Chapter Eighty-One**

It seemed to take Sirius an eternity to answer James's question. He just looked at him, his brow furrowed and both his hands resting on his best friend's shoulders. At one point Mary thought he was going to say something, but only a second later did he seem to have changed his mind. "I don't know," he sighed at last. "But you need to calm down, James. Blaming each other-"

"-But it's my family, Sirius. My son's life is in danger, my _wife_. Lily, I…"

From the corner of the hallway came a quiet sob. Lily was leaning back against the wall and had clapped her hands in front of her eyes. Mary, who had been staring at James for the entire time, suddenly felt guilty about neglecting her friend like this. She let go of Remus's hand, who at some time had reached for hers while James was yelling at her, walked over to Lily and wrapped her arms around her. Lily hugged her back without another word, probably because she was still too snivelly to speak at all.

"Shhh," Mary said soothingly, rubbing Lily's shoulder, while continuing to watch the Marauders over her head. Remus and Peter had also gathered around James. Peter put his hand on James's arm when he said something, but James shook his head and muttered something as a reply. Mary's eyes flicked to Sirius who was still watching James with a worried frown on his handsome face. Looking a little closer, she noticed he looked pale and was swaying slightly on his legs. She realized he was exhausted and would have to lay down soon, but it would be pointless to warn him. He would never take her advice to heart, not when James was still freaking out like this.

Strangely enough, Mary wasn't really angry with James. Part of her even understood why he was looking for a scape goat; it was so much easier to vex your frustration on someone else than yourself or just the situation. What she did not understand, was why it had to be her. Had she ever acted secretive around him? She continued to ponder over this as she comforted Lily and watched the Marauders. Their heads were hunched together now; Remus was saying something and Peter nodded approvingly. James however, did not seem convinced. Mary couldn't exactly follow what they were saying, but she still overheard some soundbites over Lily's sniffs.

"… end up in that basement?"  
"I agree to some extent that…"  
"… not Mary," came Sirius's placating voice.  
"I don't know. How… so sure?"  
"I _am_," Sirius said, his voice rising slightly.  
"Shhh!"  
"But think… run to Voldemort… only one who would gain…"

That was the final straw for Mary. Something just snapped inside. How James could think that she, a Muggle-born witch for crying out loud, would profit from running towards the most evil wizard of their time was beyond her. It suddenly hurt so much to know that one of her best and oldest friends thought she was the spy. Like she would ever be capable of betraying her friends and being partly responsible for all the Order-members who had been killed. Fabian, Gideon, Zabini, Edgar, Marlene, _Brice_… "Something to gain, _me_?" she snapped loudly, her eyes flickering with indignation.

James and the others looked around at her, alarmed. Mary was still holding Lily, but had stopped rubbing her friend's shoulder. Instead, she glared at James. "What on earth did I do to make you think I could be the spy?"

"Mary," Sirius sighed, tiredly rubbing his face. "Just stay out of this for a moment."

"Excuse me, but I think I have the right to know why James is suspecting me."

James shot her a weary look. "How did you end up there?" he asked quietly.

"Where?"

"The basement at Magdalen… With Voldemort, Snape, Bella and Malfoy in the same room. How?"

She stared at him. "I already told you guys that, didnt I? I was duelling Alison, she made the wall behind me explode and the force of the explosion made me drop about three stories down. _That's_ how."

"And how convenient it was…"

"Well yeah, I guess so! If I didn't overhear that conversation, we wouldn't even know that Voldemort is after you and Lily. Heck, you'd probably already be dead by now."

James paled and Lily pushed herself away from Mary, the tears still rolling down her cheeks. No one said anything for a moment. It was Peter who finally broke the tense silence. "Merlin's Beard, Mary… How can you say something like that?"

Mary closed her eyes for a moment. "Look, I'm sorry," she said finally, forcing herself to calm down. "But I just don't understand why James thinks I would…"

"You could ensure the life of Erin and that of your own by making a deal with Voldemort or the Death Eaters," James muttered while staring at a large framed picture of the Rolling Stones on the wall.

That remark was enough to make her blood boil again. "_What_?" she hissed so virulently that James looked up in shock. "Do you actually believe," she said, now positively shaking with anger, as she walked over to the guys until she was standing in front of him, "that I have it in me to betray you or Lily, and- and… _Harry_?"

"If your daughter's life was at stake, then maybe…" he replied quietly, refusing to look at her.

Mary stared at him with her hands clenched at her side, fighting a strong impulse to scrape his eyes out. Sirius, knowing her better than anyone else, seemed to know what was coming, but he would be too weak to stop her. From the corner of her eyes, Mary could see him nudging Remus, who stepped up and gently caught her by the arm. "Look, I think we should all sit down and talk some more over a Muggle beer…"

But Mary was done talking, done with being accused of crimes she wouldn't even think of ever committing. She would rather die herself than ever betraying her friends and she thought everyone knew that. But, apparently, she had been mistaken. She managed to push Remus aside and blocked James against the wall like he had done earlier. "Fine Potter," she said using his last name, which was something she had never done before. "You want proof? I'll give you proof."

She stepped back and roughly pulled up the sleeves of her robes. Glaring at him, her eyes glinting with fury and indignation, she thrust both of her wrists in his face. "There, happy now?"

James said nothing and stared down at the floor. This time it was Peter who wrapped his arms around her. "Calm down," he said quietly, pulling her back. Mary let him, but her eyes remained fixed on James. Her voice quivering with anger and emotion, she said the one thing she would have never thought possible. "I don't have the Dark Mark on me. My forearms are clean, as is my conscience. I'm going now, I have to pick up Erin at my parents. But thanks James, I now know how you feel about me. And I don't think I ever want to see you again. "

Without another word, she released herself from Peter's embrace, turned around and walked out of the pub, straight into the drizzling rain. The weather matched her current mood and she was grateful for it, letting the small drops of water alloy with the hot tears on her flustered face. She could not remember ever being this angry with James. Sure, he had acted like a conceited jerk on many occasions, but he had been nice to her overall and was the only Marauder she had considered her friend from their first year at Hogwarts. Mary had already rounded the corner into a crowded street (it was shopping night) when she realized she had left Sirius behind. He was in no condition to apparate home on his own and she considered going back to get him. But then she reasoned Remus or Peter would probably drop him off at their apartment in her place, so she walked to a quiet side street and disapparated to her parents mansion instead.

Her initial plan was to get Erin and head back home immediately, but her stressed behaviour did not go by unnoticed. When her mother asked what was going on, Mary considered keeping up appearances. She did not want to make her parents worry more about her than they already did, but truth was that Mary could use some unbiased advice. She sat down at the kitchen table and after her mother had made them some tea, they talked about her fight with James. She couldn't possibly tell her about everything that was going on – she left out that Voldemort was chasing him and Lily – but it was great to have someone listening who would not judge her. Or justify James's actions, as she was sure Sirius was going to do once she got home.

Her mother merely listened and in the end, she put a hand on Mary's shoulder. "Honey, I know things are stressful right now, but pointing fingers at each other won't get you any further. I'm sure James will come to see that soon enough as well. He's a good man, Mary. Just give him time."

"_I_ need some time," she muttered before hugging her mother. "Thanks mum. I must be going now. Sirius will be wondering what's keeping us."

She picked up Erin and the shoulder bag of diapers, lotions and the big fluffy teddy bear and disapparated to her and Sirius's apartment. She expected him to be home already, but the lights were still out when she got there. She switched them on and put Erin down in her cot at the back of the room. After casting a drying spell on her damp robes and hanging them back on the hallstand, she walked into the living room and stared out of the window. Despite her mother's advice, she still felt betrayed and angry. Erin, who was quite awake at this late hour, seemed to notice something was amiss and started to cry. Kinda lazy and quiet at first, but soon she was crying hysterically with long and loud shrieks. "Erin," Mary said in a soothing voice as she bent over the cot. "Mummy has a very bad headache. Please, please, be quiet."

But of course that didn't work. Mary sighed and had just picked Erin from the cot to gently rock her daughter when she heard a soft pop down in the hallway, followed by quiet voices. The door to the living room openend right when she turned away from the window. It was Lily who walked through the door first, supporting an exhausted Sirius. Her and Lily's eyes met after her friend had guided Sirius to the couch and made him sit down. She said nothing at all for a moment. And then: "Thank God you're here."

Mary shrugged moodily and went back to comforting Erin. "I clearly told you where I was be going, didn't I?"

"You know what she means, Mary," Sirius said, kicking off his shoes and stretching his legs on the couch with a quiet groan. "The Death Eaters could have been waiting for you at the end of the street."

"Well," Mary replied angrily, making Erin wail even louder. "Like that would have mattered much. After all, according to _some_ people I've been best pals with them for a while now."

"That's not fair," Lily whispered. "James feels terrible about what happened."

"Good for him," she replied coldly, turning back to the window.

Apparently Sirius was trying to get up, because Mary heard Lily say "No, you need to stay down, Sirius" and when she looked back, Lily was standing next to him with her hand on his shoulder. Erin wasn't crying any less and Mary started to feel desperate. "Oh God, please just shut up," she told the baby pleadingly. "I cannot take this anymore," she added in a thick voice, feeling her throat close up.

The next moment, Lily was standing beside her and wrapped an arm around her. "It's okay, Mare," she said, leaning her head on her shoulder. "You're too stressed right now. Babies feel that and respond to it. Give Erin to me, it'll be fine."

Mary obeyed, swallowing back tears, and handed Erin over. Lily started to walk up and down the room and the baby was already calming down slightly. Mary sighed and massaged her temples. "It's ridiculous that I'm the stressed one when Voldemort is hunting your family down, and not mine."

Lily smiled sadly over her goddaughter's head. "Forget stressed, I meant upset."

Mary smiled back weakly and looked at Sirius. "I'm sorry I left you behind."

He shrugged. "That's okay. You needed time alone, although I still think it was stupid to run out into the street like that. Besides, I wouldn't have been able to go anytime soon. I could not leave James behind like that. Come and sit with me. Please?" he added, when Mary looked at him wearily.

The last thing she needed right now was someone defending James, but she sighed and sat down on the edge of the couch anyway. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, but she did not look back and continued to watch Lily instead, who had just started to sing a well-known lullaby:

_"Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are.  
Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky.  
When the blazing sun is gone, when he nothing shines upon_

Then you show your little light, twinkle, twinkle, all the night.  
And the traveler in the dark, thanks you for your tiny spark  
How could he see where to go, if you did not twinkle so?"

Sirius followed Mary's gaze and smiled when he looked at Lily and his daughter. Erin was responding well to her godmother's singing; she wasn't making a sound and watched her with big and curious eyes as she held on to a string of long dark red hair. Lily, clearly relieved the lullaby worked better than just walking up and down the room, smiled and continued:

"_In the dark blue sky you keep, often through my curtains peep,  
For you never shut your eye, till the sun is in the sky.  
As your bright and tiny spark, lights the traveler in the dark,  
Though I know not what you are, twinkle, twinkle, little star."_

At the end of the song, Erin had fallen soundly asleep and Lily carefully placed her back in the cot. "This song always works like a charm on Harry too," she whispered. "I guess they really like the melody. Anyway, we should head back to the kitchen. In case one of us feels the need to start yelling again…"

Mary could not help but smile over Lily's ability to always being able to relativize and helped Sirius getting up before guiding him over to the kitchen table, where they discussed what they should do now. In the end, Lily and Sirius succeededed in making Mary realize that James wasn't thinking straight when he accused her and that he didn't actually believe she was the spy, but that he was just frustrated about not knowing anything, other than that they, besides Frank, Alice and Neville, were in mortal danger. But she also told Lily that she _was_ still very upset and did not know if she could forgive James. It was far past midnight when Lily went home, but only after making Mary promise to write her the next day.

After she disapparated, Mary first brought a sleeping Erin to her bedroom before returning to get Sirius. As she was helping him to climb the stairs and noticed that took a lot of effort on his side, she realized exactly how tired he was. "You've overburdened your body tonight, Sirius. That's not right. You need to stay home tomorrow. If Pierce finds out…"

Sirius huffed after they entered their bedroom and he flopped down on the bed. "Who gives a toss about Pierce?"

"I do," Mary said in an admonitory voice. "And so should you. He's the best Spell-Damage Healer Britain has seen in years."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. It's only a good thing I was there tonight. Someone had to talk some sense into James."

"So you were angry with him as well?" Mary asked as she pulled on one of Sirius's boxers and a blue tank top.

"Of course I was," he muttered while trying to pull off his socks and failed. "Damn it!"

Mary, who was having an odd flashback about when she was injured after Brice died and had to be undressed by him, sat down in front of the bed. "Here, let me."

She carefully pulled off his socks and pants and when she was lifting up his shirt, she noticed there were a few old blood stains on the bandages around his chest. She frowned. "How did that happen?"

"I don't know, but it does it really matter? These bandages need to get changed tomorrow anyway."

"I could do it right now if you want."

Sirius looked at her for a moment, then nodded and as Mary carefully pulled off the bandages to inspect the healing cuts on his chest (and the large one on his back), he quietly said: "James does feel really bad."

Mary said nothing, unsure of what she was feeling. She could not really blame James for what he did, but was unable to stop being angry with him either for accusing her, and not one of the others. "I know that," she sighed at last. "Thanks by the way for standing up for me the way you did. For not believing for a second that I could be the spy," she clarified when he frowned at her.

"I know it's not you."

"Well, that's pretty obvious now. Everyone knows there's no slithering black snake on my forearm."

"That's not it," he said, wincing slightly as she put some ointment on one of his cuts and started to rub it in. "The world isn't split in Death Eaters and good people. Not all of Voldemort's workers have the Dark Mark. He has many informants as well, remember Winchelsey?"

She pulled a face and Sirius almost smiled. "But I know it's not you. Don't ask me to explain, it's a feeling, a… I dunno. I'm just convinced… You wouldn't betray me or any of us."

Mary, her throat closing up again because of his self-evident trust in her, bent over and kissed him fiercely. "Thank you," she whispered when they broke apart. "And… same here."

This time he really did smile and stroke her hair. They looked at each other for another moment before Mary got back to taking care of the rest of his wounds. When she had cleaned his chest and back and was about to wrap fresh bandages over it, she thought of something. "But you do believe the spy is still alive. And one of us…" she added hesitantly when she noticed Sirius's eyes had become slightly darker. His gaze was now expressionless; it looked like the roll-down shutters had come down and were once again hiding his true feelings from view.

He sighed. "Yes… Yes, I do."

"Who do you think it is, then? Not James?"

He shot her an annoyed look. "Of course not."

Mary said nothing and focused on tying up the bandage for another while. "So you're not going to talk about it."

"What good would it do?"

"Well, for a start, I think I have the right to know."

Sirius shot her a long look and for a moment, Mary thought he was going to turn away, but then he sighed and bit his lip instead. "Look, you can't talk about this with anyone. Not even Lily, alright? I'm still investigating at this point… Nothing's certain yet."

"Investigating, you mean…?"

"Yes," he replied impatiently. "I'm thinking of informing Moody as soon as I get back to work."

"But who were you tracking, then?"

Sirius said nothing and stared at a crack in the ceiling. "Remus," he muttered after another moment of tense silence.

Mary stared at him with her mouth hanging open, wondering if her ears were deceiving her. "Remus? But how… Why?"

"James mentioned personal gain earlier tonight, didn't he? Well, the only one of us who would profit if Voldemort took over the wizarding world is Remus, a werewolf. And after Brice got killed…"

She shook her head in astonishment. "Remus. Our friend Remus, Erin's _godfather_? Are you out of your freaking mind?"

Siirius did turn away from her now. He turned to his other side and stared at the wall. "I knew you wouldn't understand,"he muttered. "And don't think I do not find it devastating to suspect one of my best friends. It's been eating me for days and I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but…"

"And did you discuss this with James or Peter? Albus?"

"No," Sirius said shortly. "No one knows yet. No one but you now." He looked back at her over his shoulder. "I meant what I said, Mare. Not a word. If Remus but detects I'm onto him, he might do something rash."

"What are you talking about?"

"Getting to me by hurting you or Erin."

Mary placed a hand on his shoulder. "Sirius, you cannot be serious… Remus, of all people! He would never do such a thing."

He shot her a pitiful look. "I knew you wouldn't understand."

She vehemently shook her head and crawled to her side of the bed to lay down. She stared at the ceiling. "It's no matter of understanding, Sirius. It's about believing, and I don't, not for a _second_, believe that Remus Lupin could be the spy. What you're asking of me is-"

"-All I'm asking is to keep this quiet, and… And to be on your guard." He turned back to her and stroke her cheek. "From now on, do not ever abandon your wand when you are alone, okay?"

Mary was about to give a snappy response, but reconsidered when she looked at him and saw the concern in his eyes. It must be killing him to suspect Remus, one of his oldest friends, for being responsible for all the deaths in the Order, and perhaps many more. It did not matter that she was absolutely certain he was just as wrong to suspect Remus as James had been to accuse her. What mattered now was that she had to stand by him, even though she didn't agree. "I won't," she nodded and placed her head on his shoulder. "You know, I think Albus might be onto something as well."

"What do you mean?" Sirius said as he pulled her closer to him.

"I just have a feeling he's not telling us everything he knows," she said, stroking his chest.

She could almost feel Sirius smile. "Tell me something I don't know. Albus has always been secretive, and not just about Order-related things. If you ask me, there's a lot more to our old Hogwarts Headmaster than we know."

Mary sighed. "I guess so. But when we were at St. Mungo's and I told him about overhearing Voldemort, he just… The way he looked and responded to my endless and utterly confusing ramble… I don't know. It's like he knew something about this matter that I did not. He did not look nearly as shocked as I thought he would. Alarmed yes, _higly_ alarmed even, but nowhere near surprised. I'm just wondering if he'll ever confide us in what is really going on."

"I wouldn't bet my life on that," Sirius replied before yawning widely. "I even think he has some kind of master plan with all of us in it. But I for one firmly believe he knows what he is doing. I mean, if Albus Dumbledore can no longer keep us safe, then who will?"

End of Update

A/N Dumdedum… Yep, things are starting to fall aprt quickly now. Sirius suspecting Remus of being the Order spy is actually a canon fact, reread the end of POA if you're not sure. I hope you liked this chapter, I like to hear what you think, anyway! –Mara

Little teaser of what's coming up in the next chapter:

_Her frown did not go by unnoticed and Sirius shot her a quizzical look. "What's wrong?"_

"Nothing."

"It's clearly not _nothing__. Something is eating you. What is it?"_

She sighed. "It's just… You said you will do everything to keep them safe."

"Exactly." His frown increased when he saw her worried look. "I have to, Mare. My friends became my family many years ago, and family members are supposed to protect each other in times of danger. And Harry… Harry is my godson. Are you saying I shouldn't do everything in my power to help them?"

"No, of course not. I want to help too, but I… I just hope you won't forget that we, me and Erin, are your family too."

Sirius stared at her. "What makes you think I would forget that?"


	82. Second Chances

Chapter Eighty-Two

**Chapter Eighty-Two**

Over the next few days, Mary basically spent most of her time on basic tasks like cleaning up the house, doing laundry and taking care of Erin and Sirius. This kept her so busy that she was not thinking about her row with James as much as she'd thought she would. But the nagging feeling of injustice on how he treated her remained and no matter what Sirius or Lily said, Mary still wasn't sure if she could ever forgive him. On one hand she understood why he had thought she was the spy, but forgetting that hateful look on his face when he pushed her against the wall, that was a different story.

Sirius was slowly recovering from his injuries. The wounds on his chest and back had healed nicely, but he was still feeling weak and lacked the energy (and interest, to Mary's annoyance) to do anything productive around the house. His attention was mostly focused on nursing Erin, and investigating Remus. They hadn't discussed the matter of their friend being the traitor since that one night, but Mary could tell Sirius was still trying to figure out if he had enough proof to alert Moody and Dumbledore.

She doubted he would mention it to her once he did, considering she had already stated clearly that according to her, Remus was not the spy. Her opinion on the subject had not changed, but she knew it would be pointless to try and convince Sirius; he'd only believe in Remus's innocence if he concluded that himself, and Mary was weary of argueing with him when she knew she'd almost lost him that night at Magdalen.

Sirius didn't know _that_ was the reason Mary did not bring up the subject again. He probably thought she was too wrapped up in other things to worry about his suspicions. The odd thing was that when Remus dropped by unexpectedly a few nights ago, Sirius had managed to act perfectly normal around him. In fact, he deserved an award for talking and laughing with Remus like they were the best friends they had always been. Mary had observed his act closely and got more surprised with him by the minute. And not in a good way; if Sirius was so good at keeping up appearances with Remus, then could he be doing the same with her? Did she know the real Sirius at all?

On a partiucarly hot Saturday afternoon in July, Sirius was reading the Daily Prophet at the kitchen table while Mary was simultaneously sorting laundry, doing the dishes (magically), filling Coco's tray of water and food and trying to decipher her mother's handwriting on a traditional lasagna-recepy. She repeatedly shot annoyed glares at him, but he did not seem to notice. He was fully engaged in an article on Cornelius Fudge, who had just been appointed as the Junior Minister in the Department of Magical Catastrophes. The only one who noticed her irritation was Erin, who was sitting in the baby chair that stood right next to Sirius. She was watching her mother intently and if Mary was not mistaken, she – besides eyeing her curiously - had an amused twinkle in her eyes. Mary couldn't help herself and smiled at the thought of their baby girl getting smarter every day when she heard the doorbell. "Could you get that?"

Sirius only looked up from his newspaper for a second. "I think it's better if you did."

Mary was just balancing a large pile of plates and glasses in the air and shot him a very annoyed look over her shoulder. "Do you mind?! I'm kind of having my hands full here."

"And I still think you should get that," he replied indifferently, not even bothering to look up again.

Mary's eyes continued to shoot daggers at him for another moment before she lowered the plates back to the sink with an unnecessary loud bang and strolled out of the kitchen. She was still muttering maledictions at his address when she got downstairs and opened the front door. No one was there. Mary, alarmed and at her guard, drew her wand from her back pocket while her eyes scanned the deserted street. Nothing happened. She was about to put her wand back and close the door when a beautiful bunch of flowers slowly floated from around the corner and stopped right in front of her. Mary frowned and – after checking if their Muggle neighbour wasn't around – grabbed it and quickly looked down to see who it was from, but there was no card.

She was just starting to wonder if this could be a trap when a male voice from around the corner spoke, in a somewhat insecure voice: "I am the biggest prat that ever walked this earth…"

Mary did not need to ask who it was, because part of her had already known when she saw the flowers. She knew the voice of this person by heart, even though she did not think she'd ever heard him speak so hesitantly before.

"I…" continued the voice, "made the huge and possibly unforgivable mistake to accuse a girl that I love, the best _girl_friend I ever had, of something she would never do. For a single moment that night I was thinking she might, and that was a horrible feeling. But I was wrong. I realize that now, and I want her to know that I'm more sorry than she could possibly imagine."

Mary stared at the flowers and picked a stray leave from one of the daisies out of the bouquet. "Look, I-"

"-I deserve," the voice continued undisturbed, "to scrub the floor of The Dove with a single tootbrush for a month… To eat an entire plate of Hagrid's rock cakes… To sniff at Peter's smelly socks… To... To ask bloody Voldemort out on a date."

Mary could not help but snort at that thought and James finally poked his head around the corner. "Or you could just forgive me."

She looked at him for a moment and Mary realized she already forgave him when he said she had been his best friend. She slammed the door wide open and gave him a little smile. "Get over here."

James walked over to her faster than she could have said "Venomous Tentacula" and hugged her with all his might. "As long as you'll never call me "Potter" again," he muttered into her hair.

"I won't," Mary whispered back as she tried to blink back a few tears. "As long as you'll never accuse me of something like that again, unless it's actually true…"

She could almost feel James grin. "Deal."

He was still hugging her close and Mary was about to suggest he could let go when an eldery couple that was passing them to enter the flower shop paused and smiled. "Congratulations dear," the old woman said kindly when her eyes fell on Mary's engagement ring. "I would have said yes too if he asked me like that. He did a far better job than my own husband here."

She pointed to the man holding her arm and he smiled at them. "I wasn't all that bad. Now come my dear, let's leave these young lovebirds alone."

In the meantime, James had finally let go of Mary and he was shooting the couple a confused look until he finally put one and two together. "Oh," he stammered. "No, no… We're not… I did not… We're just…"

The woman raised her eyebrows and Mary felt the need to step in. She handed the bouquet over to James, pushed him inside the house and smiled at the couple. "He's still a little bemused about everything, I reckon. But thank you so much for your well wishes. And eh… Have a nice day."

She slammed the door shut before they could reply and turned back to a perplexed-looking James. "Did they just assume that we…"

"Got engaged, yes," she said, smiling. "What does it matter? It's not like we'll ever see them again."

He snorted. "But that is just ridiculous."

Mary shot him a mock indignant look. "Ridiculous? Pardon me? Marrying me would be _ridiculous_??"

"No, of course not!" he stammered. "I just that I… I mean, you and me, we couldn't possibly…"

He trailed off hopelessly when Mary's grin became bigger and bigger. "I'm just messing with you," she said grinning and ducked when he tried give her a friendly punch on the shoulder. "Come on."

James laughed and followed her upstairs. When Mary ushered him to enter the room first, he walked inside but turned back when he noticed no one was there. "Where's…?"

"Kitchen."

He nodded and walked towards the kitchen. Sirius was still reading the Daily Prophet, but this time he did look up. He smiled when his eyes dropped to the flowers James was holding. "Awww, you bought me flowers? Gee Prongs, you shouldn't have done that."

"Shut up," James replied with a grin. He was about to smack Sirius with the flowers when Mary intervened. "I'll just put these in some water, shall I? Would you like to drink anything, James? Coffee, tea…?"

"Coffee would be lovely, thanks," he replied while bending over to greet Erin. "Hello there," he cooed and softly blew against her nose. She crowed with joy and reached for James's nose. He looked at Sirius and chuckled. "She's got your eye twinkle. With Harry, I'm pretty sure he's inherited Lily's personality but this little girl here- " he gently rubbed Erin's cheek with his thumb "-has got you written all over her. She'll be causing a lot of trouble at Hogwarts in her day, this one. I just know it."

Mary smiled when she looked at them and put down three cups of coffee and a plate of cookies on the table. "Not if we raise her properly."

Sirius was about to reach for a cookie but stopped to raise an eyebrow at her instead. "Are you saying _I_ wasn't raised properly?"

Mary opened her mouth, but James was about a second faster than her. "Do you really need her to answer that?" he asked cheekily as he flopped down on the chair next to her.

Sirius laughed. "Good point." He watched Mary arranging the flowers with a satisfied look on his face. "Everything back to normal between you guys, then?"

He exchanged a look with his friend and Mary realized they had thoroughly discussed James's apology before it took place. That would explain why Sirius had practically forced her to open the door. When she looked at him, he smiled at her and her annoyance with him disappeared in an instant. "Yeah," she said smiling back before glancing at James. "We're good."

James placed a hand on her shoulder. "Mary, thanks for accepting my apology. In all honesty, I'm not sure if I would have forgiven you so easily in return."

She shrugged and sipped her coffee. "You said I've always been your best girlfriend. I never knew that and it meant even more to me than when you offered to sniff Peter's socks."

Sirius choked on his coffee. "Ugh," he coughed. "James, that is just gross!"

"Well, I was a little desperate," James admitted, smiling slightly, before he got serious again. "But I meant it. If it weren't for you, Lily would have never even agreed to go out of me."

"Oh, don't be so sure about that."

"It's true. She probably would have married that slimy git of a Severus Snape instead. Merlin, would you imagine that?"

Sirius pulled a face, but Mary didn't laugh. She just shook her head and shot James a serious look. "No, she wouldn't. Lily always saw Severus as one of her closest friends, nothing more. Well, at least until he started to hang out with Mulciber and co... Anyway, I know for a fact she fancied you long before she went out with you."

He smiled, looking a lot happier than she had seen him in a long time, before shooting her a close look. "Kinda like you, then."

Even though she was still looking at James, Mary could see that Sirius was straightening up ever so slightly in his seat. She only just suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "Yes… I suppose you could say that."

The grin on Sirius's face turned into a smirk and Mary put her face in her hands, thinking this was one revelation she'd rather had kept from him. She could hear he was getting up from his chair. He walked around the table until he was standing behind her and wrapped his arms around her before kissing her glowing cheek. "Thanks for clarifying that, Mare. Was it our fifth or sixth year?"

"Halfway through the sixth," she muttered darkly. "One year too early, because I still hated your guts."

Sirius laughed and got up to grab an apple from the fruit bowl on the sink. "Well, not really apparently. If what you just said is true…" He looked at James who was staring at a framed picture of the Marauders on the wall. "So James, how is Lily holding up with everything?"

He sighed. "Not well. I mean, she's coping, but…" He hesitated for a moment before he seemed to make up his mind and continued: "But things are a lot worse than we thought. Albus advised us to keep things quiet, but we have to go into hiding as soon as possible."

Sirius looked perplexed. "But how… Why?"

"He says chances are Voldemort will come after us first before hunting down Frank and Alice. And that he has enough reasons to believe the spy already informed Voldemort that we know he's after us. Why he knows all these things… I don't know, but Lily says we should trust him. Anyway, we're leaving in two days." He looked at Mary and chuckled mirthlessly. "See, I'm confiding both of you in this. If that isn't proof I'm no longer suspecting you, I don't know what is."

He was crumpling the top corner of the Daily Prophet in frustration and Mary placed her hand over his. "I'm so sorry…"

He shrugged. "We're still alive and that's what matters. And if everything works out, we'll be safe in Godric's Hollow." He gulped down his coffee in one go. "At least for now."

He was clutching his cup and Mary gently took it from him. "Would you like another coffee? Or something stronger, perhaps? Firewhiskey?"

"Yeah, sure. Whatever," James said absent-mindedly before looking at Sirius. "I'm just so concerned that something will happen to us. I haven't slept in over a week. Lily and Harry... I wouldn't know what to do if… I mean, I don't care if I die, but not my wife and child. The thought alone is too gruesome to imagine."

Mary, who was about to add a generous dash of Firewhiskey to James's coffee, and Sirius exchanged a worried glance. After a moment of tense silence, she placed the cup on the table in front of him. "You shouldn't say things like that. You can't give up. Not now. You've got to keep fighting."

"Oh, we'll never give up, that's not it. It's just downright depressing that when Voldemort wants you dead, there is no real hiding place. You're never safe... I could take Lil and Harry and bivouac with the Inuit in Siberia and he would still track us down." He sighed. "If only I knew why it has to be us…"

Sirius didn't reply. He was staring at James with a furrowed brow and Mary could see he was torn between telling him that he suspected Remus or not. She watched how James took a large gulp of his coffee. He pulled a face and coughed. "Merlin Mary, are you trying to poison me?"

She shook her head. "I just thought you could use something stronger. But James, don't try to figure out why, because you'll never find the answer. Just accept the fact that you're in danger and focus on surviving instead."

He nodded grimly. "You guys should be on your guard as well."

"What makes you say that?" Mary asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.

James sighed. "If I'm right, Voldemort just discovered a new way to get rid of us and our families. First it's us, Frank and Alice will be up next and then it's your turn. It's how he wants to scare the crap out of the remaining Order-members. And so far, it's working like a charm, isn't it?"

Sirius hadn't said anything for a long time, but he was speaking up now. "James, listen to yourself!" he said, his eyes glinting fiercely. "You're talking like you're already dead. But that is not going to happen, okay? It's not. Damn it, I won't allow it."

James shot him a sad look. "Even so, it's crucial to arrange matters if… if things _do_ go wrong."

"No," Sirius replied firmly. He was shaking his head vehemently and Mary didn't think she ever saw that fierce gleam in his eyes before. "No way. If there is any way to assist in keeping you guys safe, I will."

"Well," James, clearly touched by Sirius's loyalty, said with a half-grin, "for starters, you could keep your mouth shut about this."

He laughed. "Naturally. So when will you be leaving?"

"Tuesday night. Again, me telling you guys this is a clear sign I trust both of you, alright?"

He looked at Mary, who had gotten up from her seat to pick up and soothe a restless Erin. She nodded. "Of course. Is there anything we can do?"

"There is acually," James said. "We won't be telling anyone else until we're in Godric's Hollow, but Lily and I would like you to be with us when we say goodbye to our old house."

"We'll be there," Sirius nodded.

"Moony and Wormtail can drop by the next day, of course."

"No!" Sirius called out, jumping up from his chair.

Mary shot him a warning look over Erin's head and James raised both his eyebrows in surprise. "Sorry?"

"You can't," he said quickly. "Moony- he's… It'll be the full moon next week."

"Oh, right," James said, taking off his glasses and rubbing his eyes tiredly. "I've been so wrapped up in my own problems that I haven't kept up with the lunar chart for weeks." He got up from his seat and shook Sirius's hand. "I should get going. Lily is dying to hear if you forgave me or not."

"Bad choice of words, mate," Sirius said, grinning slightly.

"Gallows humor?" he suggested with a shrug and Sirius laughed. James walked over to Mary, gave her a hug and kissed Erin on the top of her head. "I'll see you guys on Tuesday. Shall we say… an hour or six?"

Mary nodded in reply and watched James disapparrating with a soft pop before she looked at Sirius. He was gazing at her without actually seeing her as he was biting his lip. "The full moon?" she snapped in an attempt to pull his mind back to the present.

He looked at her in shock. "What?"

"If you're still that keen on believing that Remus is the traitor, could you at least keep that distrubing information to yourself until you're absolutely sure? Especially with James. He's got enough on his mind as it is."

Sirius sighed and rested his head on his arms. "I know. But I wasn't lying: it _is_ the full moon next Tuesday."

Mary sat down next to him with Erin on her lap. The baby girl tried to tug on Sirius's sleeve to get his attention. It worked, because he looked up and started to make funny faces, to her great amusement. Mary on the other hand, found it hard to smile after what she just heard from James. "Did you really mean what you said?" she asked.

Sirius looked at her. "About what?"

"About helping James and Lily, protecting them in every way you can."

"Of course I did."

"Right…" Mary watched how Erin grabbed hold of Sirius's finger. She didn't know why, but something about Sirius's resolution to help James and Lily was bugging her. She wanted to help their friends as well, but it was a little unnerving to know that Sirius would be willing to do _everything_ to protect them and Harry.

Her frown did not go by unnoticed and Sirius shot her a quizzical look. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"It's clearly not _nothing_. Something's eating you. What is it?"

She sighed. "It's just… You said you will do everything to keep them safe."

"Exactly." His frown increased when he saw her worried look. "I have to, Mare. My friends became my family many years ago, and family members are supposed to protect each other in times of danger. And Harry… Harry is my godson. Are you saying I shouldn't do everything in my power to help them?"

"No, of course not. I want to help too, but I… I just hope you won't forget that we, me and Erin, are your family too."

Sirius stared at her. "What makes you think I would forget that?"

"It's a feeling," she said quietly. "A sense of foreboding… You always act rash when people you care about are in danger, and as much as I love you for that, please consider leaving some things up to other people for once. Do it for us," she added, putting her chin on Erin's head.

He stared at his hands. "I would never forget about what's best for Erin, you know that," he muttered.

"Not just Erin," Mary said with a trembling voice. "What about _me_? What am _I_ going to do if you go and get yourself killed in the process?"

She closed her eyes and felt hot tears trickle down her cheeks. She hated that she was crying so much lately, but the constant worry about whether or not she and everyone else would survive the war and get out of this mess unharmed was so stressful that hiding those feelings seemed to be a pointless waste of energy, especially since their situation was becoming darker every day. Mary still hadn't opened her eyes when Sirius kneeled down in front of her and cupped her face to wipe the tears away with his thumbs. "I don't know how," he said softly. "But I am going to make this work. I will not put your or Erin's life in danger and I'll find a way to help Lily and James out as well."

She sniffed. "But if you end up getting hurt…"

"I might," he said after a pause. "But then again, I might not. And I honestly think we'll all be alright in the end. We know that Voldemort is after James and Lily, so we're one step ahead of him when it comes to that."

"But the spy, don't you think he-"

"-Oh, Voldemort knows it now, I don't doubt that. But I have this feeling Albus and Moody might be able to find a way to defeat him for good soon."

Mary sighed. "Well, just…"

A smile crossed his face. "Be careful, I know."

"This isn't funny, Sirius."

He rolled his eyes. "Do I look like I'm joking?"

She shook her head and Sirius tenderly kissed her forehead. He was just sitting down on the opposite chair when Erin grabbed the collar of his shirt. She was already clutching a lock of Mary's hair. She and Sirius looked at each other as they remembered the day when Erin was born and had hold onto both of them, just like she was doing now. "She's growing up so fast it's scary," Sirius said quietly, smiling down at their daughter.

"I know," she sighed before grinning. "Before you know it, you'll be giving her away at her wedding."

He pulled a face and she laughed, right when Erin blurted out something that sounded like "Du." Mary looked down in surprise. "Did I just imagine it or-"

"-No," Sirius replied excitedly. "I heard it too."

He pulled Mary on his lap before gently tickling Erin's cheek. "What did you say there, sweetie?"

Erin merely yawned as a reply before closing her eyes and snuggling up to Mary's chest, who smiled. "I think it was just a one-time sound for now, but I am fairly certain she said "du"."

He wrinkled his nose. "Drat."

Mary shot him a surprised look and he laughed. "I spent the last weeks teaching her to say "da" first instead of "mu"," he explained. "And she comes up with "du". That's just great."

"Well, actually," she said thoughtfully after a moment of silence, "It is."

"How come?"

"In a way, "du" is a contraction of "da" and "mu". So basically, she called us both at the same time."

Sirius looked down at a snoozing Erin and the smile on his face slowly turned into a grin. "You know, I like that thought. In fact, "du" is even better than "da"."

Mary turned her head to kiss him. She was still smiling when they broke apart. "Glad you agree," she said softly before turning her attention back to Erin. Sirius kissed her bare shoulder and hugged her even closer. They sat like that in the kitchen for a long time without saying anything. They just watched how a very content-looking Erin slept on in silence. For the first time in days, Mary felt a little happy. She made a mental note to cherish this short moment of supreme bliss with her family, because although she was trying hard to not give in to her fears, it was impossible to block out the terse but clear voice in the back of her mind whispering that this peaceful night might have been their last.

End of Update

**A/N Says nothing… Okay, things are really going worse fast now, I know. However there is a little bit of happiness out there waiting, but not in the next chapter, I'm afraid. I hope you guys liked the chapter and remember: lurking is silver, reviewing is gold! Finally a little teaser of what you can expect next:**

"_Even so," Lily said firmly, looking over at Harry. "Listen, I need to ask you something. I know you're not Harry's godmother…"_

"Lily…" Mary said wearily, already aware of what would be coming next.

"But I know you would treat him like your own son, and-"

"Please don't do this," Mary whispered.

But Lily was now looking straight at her, and the fierce twinkle her emerald eyes were famous for had returned to her face, even if it was just for a moment. "This could very well be the last time we see each other."

"No," Mary replied, shaking her head. "I mean it Lily: don't."

"I need to know, Mare. If James and I end up being killed, will you… Well, only if you're able to, of course, but will you promise to look after Harry?"


	83. Godric's Hollow

Chapter Eighty-Three

**Chapter Eighty-Three**

"There," Mary said as she waved her wand around and cast Wingardium Leviosa on some boxes of books that flew straight to the top of an already impressive pile in the middle of the living room.

It was Tuesday night and James, Lily and Harry were almost prepared to leave their Notting Hill apartment and move to the cottage in Godric's Hollow. Sirius, Mary and Erin had been at the house the entire afternoon to help pack their things. The guys had taken care of all the heavy pieces of furniture such as the bed, table and couch while the girls focused on packing things like books and tableware.

James and Sirius were currently levitating an immense wooden bookcase together and wanted to transport it to the middle of the room. This was not an easy task, considering they had been too lazy to take out the books first and were now vainly trying to prevent those from falling to the floor. Lily was watching them with a small smile on her face. "Those idiots," she muttered to herself as she put a strain of long red hair behind her ear and turned around.

Mary was just transporting the last box to the top of the pile. "Done," she sighed right when there was a loud crash. James and Sirius had "parked" the bookcase in the dividing wall between the hallway and the kitchen. The sound of the crash was still resounding through the empty room when Mary noticed that a large chunk of the wall was now missing; the cloud of dust and mortar that was slowly whirling down to the floor seemed to be glittering in the evening sunlight. "Oops," Sirius said, scratching his head, in what must have been the understatement of the month.

James shot an anxious look at Lily, who was staring at the damaged corner of the bookcase with a frown on her face. Mary knew why; the desk had belonged to her father before he died. "I'm so sorry," he said sincerely, interpreting her frown correctly. "But no worries: I'll fix this in no time."

A smile broke through on her tired face. "I know you will, James. But if the neighbours didn't know that we were moving already, they sure as hell know now."

He shrugged. "It's not like we'll be gone forever. We'll come back when things have calmed down. Or not, but even so: I'm not selling this apartment. At least not yet."

"You're not?" Sirius asked, looking up from investigating the damage to the bookcase.

"No, I was going to tell Remus he can hide out here in case another landlord kicks him out."

"Oh, right. Remus," Sirius replied rather shortly and Mary saw that James's brow was furrowing slightly. However, before he could say anything, Mary pulled Lily along by the arm and said: "We're going to get the last boxes from upstairs. You're pretty much done here anyway, aren't you?"

James nodded, his eyes still focused on Sirius. "Yeah. Well, after we fixed the bookcase and the wall, we are."

Mary smiled. "That's great," she said before looking back at Lily. "Coming?"

Her friend nodded absent-mindedly. "What? Oh, okay…"

The girls made their way upstairs to Harry's bedroom, which was completely empty with the exception of two large boxes in the corner and a big fluffy blanket on the floor. Harry was sitting on it. His toys and teddybear were surrounding him, but he was not paying attention to those at all. Instead he was keeping a close eye on Erin, who was sleeping peacefully in her baby seat. Harry's and Erin's hands were linked and Mary couldn't help but smile happily at the sight of their entwined little hands. "Awww Lil, would you look at that?" She sighed. "If only I had a camera…"

"He's looking after her like he's her big brother. The kids of James and Sirius, who would have thought they could be so adorable…"

"Her _brother_? Ah, now that would complicate certain things a bit, wouldn't it?"

Lily frowned at her. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, you know," she said serenely, smiling down on Harry and Erin. "The whole idea of them getting married one day…"

"Sirius told you that?" Lily flushed when Mary nodded. "Did he bother to mention I was joking?"

"He didn't have to. Although I must confess… It would be cool if it turned out that way."

"Maybe," Lily shrugged. "But honestly: I don't care who Harry ends up with. As long as he's happy, I'm happy."

"Yeah, same here," Mary said. She watched how Lily slowly walked to the open window before looking down at the boxes with a sigh. She was about to suggest taking those down first and come back for Erin and Harry later when Lily whispered: "We're leaving. We're _actually_ leaving…"

Mary walked over to her. She noticed – and not for the first time that day – that her friend's skin looked gaunt. It made sense considering the most evil wizard in centuries was after her family, but it still shocked Mary to see Lily without the usual sparkle in her bright emerald eyes. She sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. "You heard what James said earlier. It's not like you're never coming home."

Lily looked at her as if she wanted to say something, but she changed her mind at the last minute and stared out over the typical Notting Hill inner garden instead. "It's just that this house holds so many memories. It's the first big thing James and I bought together. And do you see that bench over there?"

She pointed to a small garden bench of stone that was surrounded by several large purple and white rhododendrons and one small authentic-looking birdbath. When Mary nodded, she smiled and said: "That is where James proposed. God, that feels like ages ago. It almost seems like another life…"

Mary shot Lily another close look and concluded her friend looked downright depressed. She could not think of anything really comforting to say or do, because she was realizing that Lily was right. Their group graduating from Hogwarts, James and Lily's wedding, their unanimous agreement on why they should join the Order… That _was_ a different life. A life where they had been relatively carefree, a life where Brice and Fabian were still alive. "Look, I'm sure-"

"-Do you," Lily interrupted her quietly, "d'you think there's a chance we'll ever have that life back?"

"I…" she stammered, torn between wanting to cheer her friend up and weary of telling her a lie. "I hope so. I mean, there must be better times lying ahead. I like to think there's a balance of good and bad things happening in a person's life. And… Well, we all had our share of bad things, so… You know what I'm saying?"

Lily was still staring at the garden bench and merely shrugged. "I'm not so sure about that. It certainly doesn't look like things will be clearing up anytime soon, right?"

Mary bit her lip. There was no possible way she could succeed in cheering Lily up now. Unless… She and Sirius had bought the Potters a small gift for their new house. They had planned to give it to them right before they would leave, but Mary reasoned Sirius wouldn't mind if she gave it to Lily now. "Hang on," she muttered before pulling her wand and pointed it out of the window. "_Accio_."

A small box with tiny air holes zoomed straight into her hands and she carefully held it out to Lily, who frowned. "What is that?"

"You'll see," Mary smiled before sitting down with crossed legs, her back leaning against the radiator below the window.

When a hesitant Lily had followed her example, she handed the box to her friend. "Sirius and I thought you could use a little company in your new house."

"Company, what-?" Lily stopped talking mid-sentence and gasped when she carefully opened the box and the head of a fluffy ginger kitten curiously poked out his head.

"We thought this might come in handy with handling all those mice too. You know, living in the countryside and all…"

Lily gently picked up the little cat and took it out of the box. "I cannot believe how small it is! It's like a tiny ball of fluff. _So_ cute! What's it called?"

"Well, us humans generally refer to this particular domestic animal as "cat" but hey, it's your party."

For the first time in days, Lily actually laughed. "Ha ha, very funny."

Mary grinned. "It's a he, and you and James can name him whatever you want, although… Well, Sirius once called him Chopper when Coco had chased him around the house until he jumped on top of Sirius's motorbike and that name sort of sticked. But I'm sure you can still change it."

"Hmm, I don't think I have to. Chopper sounds fun, especially because it's a contradiction with his current size."

"You'd think so, but I know better."

"Meaning…" Lily said as she tickled a purring Chopper behind his little ears.

"Meaning I witnessed him having a go at my curtains."

"And?"

She sighed dramatically. "It was a massacre. But look at it this way: you won't need to buy yourself a watch-dog now. And if Voldemort so much dares to show up on your doorstep, he'll be in for a _big_ surprise."

She thought she could make Lily laugh again but apparently, mentioning Voldemort wasn't the best thing she could have done. Her friend started to cry. And not quietly; her loud sobbing made Harry look up at his mother in confusion. Even Erin woke up for a moment to see what all the fuss was about. Mary felt ashamed to joke over something that was so life-threatening. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"No, this isn't your fault," Lily replied while brushing her tears away with one hand and continuing to stroke Chopper with the other. "It's just… I am so scared, Mare. _So_ scared of what might happen…"

"But it won't," Mary said, trying to sound more confident than she was feeling. "We found out about Voldemort's plans in time. Dumbledore knows and he's found a way to protect you."

She sighed. "I know that, and I do trust Albus. But… Remember those weird dreams I've been having?"

Mary shot her a sceptical look. "You know what my colleague said about that. They're not necessarily prophetic dreams."

"But they have become more detailed over the months, and more definite. If what happens in my dreams will come true, James and I are going to d-"

"You're having those nightmares because your brain needs to process your worst fears. You can't talk about that to James, so your mind looks for a different way to deal with it."

Lily sniffed. "If you only knew… It's not just James and me. It will affect you and Sirius a great deal as well."

Mary jerked up her head. "_What_?"

Her friend was staring down at her hands. "I'm not sure," she said quietly. "What I do know is that there's a real possibility Voldemort will destroy my family one way or the other. And I can… what's the word – See something bad is going to happen to Sirius as well, but I can't seem to figure out what or why. And you… It's dark, I know that, but…"

Mary stared at her. "You're basically predicting my death here, are you aware of that?"

Lily finally looked at her and smiled sadly. "I could be wrong and I hope I am. If, like you said, these dreams are just a figment of my imagination-"

"-I never said that. They're a way of processing-"

"Even so," Lily continued firmly, looking over at Harry. "Listen, I need to ask you something. I know you're not Harry's godmother…"

"Lily…" Mary said wearily, already aware of what would be coming next.

"But I know you would treat him like your own son, and-"

"Please don't do this," she whispered.

But Lily was now looking straight at her, and the fierce twinkle her emerald eyes were famous for had returned to her face, even if it was just for a moment. "This could very well be the last time we see each other."

"No," Mary replied, fiercely shaking her head. "I mean it Lily: don't."

"I need to know, Mare. If James and I end up being killed, will you… Well, only if you're able to yourself, of course, but will you promise to look after Harry?"

Mary closed her eyes, because she had known what Lily was going to ask from the start. Even though she still believed Lily's dreams weren't real, she understood why her friend was making her promise to take care of her child if she died. And if she could take but a little of that fear away, she would. Mary nodded before looking at Lily and nodding again. "Of course I will," she said, feeling the tears sting in her eyes.

Lily was letting hers run freely down her cheeks. "Thank you," she whispered gratefully.

Mary wrapped an arm around her shoulder and almost squashed Chopper in the process, who miaowed indignantly. "Whoops sorry," she said nervously and Lily quickly put the kitten back into the box. "Of course, if things turn out the other way around, Erin will be safe with me."

"I would think so," she replied with a wry smile on her face. "Especially since you're her godmother."

"And Sirius is Harry's godfather."

"That he is," Mary said before getting on her feet and pulling Lily back up. "But let's just keep believing that we're going to be fine and one day will be marrying Erin out to Harry in peace."

Lily laughed and shook her head. "Still, it's never a bad thing to be prepared." She looked at the boxes. "Shall we take those down first and come back for the kids later?"

"Hmm, I think we can take them all down together. You transport the boxes and I'll carry Harry and Erin."

"Okay," Lily nodded and she walked over to the boxes while Mary crouched down in front of the blanket. When she was about to pick up Harry, she thought of something else. "Say Lil, if this really is the last time we're seeing each other, you wouldn't mind answering a simple question for me, now would you?"

Lily had just pointed her wand at the three boxes. "_Locomotor boxes_," she said before looking over at Mary. "Spill."

"I always wondered… Back in fifth year, when you got all friendly with Sirius all of the sudden. Did you guys kiss that night when Peeves locked you up in the Trophy Room?"

Her friend lifted her eyebrows in surprise. "Why would you want to know that?"

She grinned. "Just curious. Oh, and also because I know without a doubt that he at least _tried_ to kiss you."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Fine, if you really must know: yes, we did."

"I knew it!" Mary called out and Harry chuckled. "Brice always said I was seeing things that weren't there, but it was perfectly clear that Sirius wouldn't pass on a chance to snog you."

She shot Lily a triumphant look, who laughed. "I kissed him, actually."

"You did not."

"Did. It was the whole atmosphere that night. I was feeling mysteriously mischievous... Anyway, Sirius and I made a pact to never mention it to anyone."

"Because of James?"

"And you."

"Me?" Mary said, looking surprised. "It was Brice who dated him in fifth year, remember?"

Lily smiled and transported the box with Chopper over to the stairs along with the other two. "I think he knew you would have never gone out with him if he snogged two of your best friends instead of one."

Mary merely smiled to herself, realizing Lily was having a point there, and placed Harry on her hip. The toddler immediately wrapped his little arms around her neck and she held Erin's baby seat in her hands as she headed down the stairs after Lily. James and Sirius seemed to have finished their work a while ago; they were sitting in the middle of the empty room on buckets they'd turned upside-down. Both of them were holding a Butterbeer and when James spotted them, he acciod two more bottles from the fridge in the kitchen. "How about a drink… What is that?"

His eyes had dropped to Chopper's small fuzzy tail that was hanging over the edge of the box. Lily put it down in front of him. "This, James, is Chopper."

He peeked into the box and gently picked up the little kitten. "_Chopper_, are you serious? Who in his right mind would call this little thing after a motorbike?"

"That would be me, Prongs," Sirius said dryly. He took Harry from Mary, who had walked over to him in the meantime, and put his godchild on his lap. "I hope you don't mind I did that," she told him quietly as he watched how James and Lily were getting to know their new pet.

Sirius looked at her and she knew he could see her eyes were red. "I understand," he said, looking over at Lily whose eyes were still a little puffy as well. "I think she could use the distraction more than James anyway."

"Glad you agree," she smiled and sat down in front of him with Erin on her lap and rested her back against his knees.

"Merlin, this kitten is small," James noted. "Look, I can hold him with one hand."

"Don't judge him by his size. He's a really feisty cat, you know. I really pity the mice in Godric's Hollow. And keep in mind that he's still going to grow."

"I'm sure he will," he grinned. "But right now, I think it's the mice who'll chase Chopper instead of the other way around."

They all laughed and continued with small talk about cats, mice, the weather: anything to put off the one thing they knew they could no longer avoid. At last, it was James who brought up the subject first when he finished drinking his third Butterbeer. "Look guys, I think it's time…"

"Alright mate," Sirius nodded after a tense moment of silence. He stood up and put Harry down on the bucket in his place. "You said you can move all this stuff in one go, right?"

"Yeah. Dumbledore showed me and Lily this powerful moving spell. It will transport all our belongings and furniture straight to our new home _and_ furnish everything at the same time. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Quite," Mary said. "And you can do that all by yourself?"

"Dumbledore said it's possible," Lily said. "Then again, he's a really powerful wizard, so James and I are doing it together." She had already pointed her wand at the large pile of boxes and furniture. "Ready?"

James nodded and they cast the complicated spell at the same time. A clear white-yellow light burst from the tip of their wands; it seemed to embrace the pile for a few seconds before everything disappeared in a blinding flash of light, leaving nothing but the two buckets behind. No one said anything for a moment. They just stared at the empty space surrounding them in silence, each of them drowned in their own thoughts, until finally, it was Lily who broke it. "So this is it."

"I guess so," James nodded, looking grave.

Mary and Sirius exchanged a worried look. "Look," he said as he picked up Harry and walked over to them. "Mary, Erin and I will drop by soon. Tomorrow night, perhaps? After we've informed the others of your new wherabouts?"

"That's fine, Sirius," Lily said. "Just owl us before you plan to drop by, okay?" She hugged him close for a moment. Mary watched the embrace with an amused twinkle in her eyes – they had actually kissed in fifth year! – until she realized once again that her friends were about to go into hiding. To hide from Voldemort, who had already wrecked so many lives and wouldn't rest until he had tracked them down. When Mary was hugging James, she couldn't put Lily's words aside that this might be the very last time she was seeing him. "Goodbye," she whispered.

Sirius was just giving Harry back to Lily – Mary could see this was particularly hard for him – and she walked over to James, who reached for her hand. "Ready, Lil?"

She smiled bravely. "Time for us to find out if we didn't send all our stuff to the wrong place by accident. I was rather nervous."

Despite everything, James laughed. "Well, I wasn't, so that would mean at least half our belongings arrived at the right place." He looked at Sirius and Mary. "See ya…"

After another moment, they disapparated with two soft pops. Mary stared at the empty spot they had left behind. Lily's words of death and dark times kept resounding in her head. Would Lily really be wrong or was there something more to her dreams after all? Mary was so distracted that she didn't even notice that Erin had started to move impatiently until Sirius took her from her. Mary watched him soothe their daughter for a moment before she whispered: "Lily thinks they're going to die."

Sirius looked sceptical. "She's scared, love. It makes sense that she's only seeing the darkest scenario possible."

"But there's… I don't know. She did sound like she knows something, you know?"

He shot her an empathetic look and wrapped an arm around her waist. "She's freaking out, but that doesn't mean we have to as well. We should not worry more than we have to. If or when disaster strikes, we'll deal with it then. There's no point in waisting your energy on something that probably isn't going to happen at all."

Mary had to give Sirius credit for always being able to see reason at times she could not. But even though his words made perfectly sense, to actually follow his advice was easier said than done. Nevertheless, she shot him a grateful look. "I'll try," she said before kissing him tenderly. "Home?"

Sirius smiled down on her with his trademark grin that had once managed to enchant Lily as well. "Home."

End if Update

**A/N: So James and Lily are in Godric's Hollow now. There will be some happiness in the next chapter which is from Sirius's pov and then… We'll be getting really close to the end. About time too, haha. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this, don't forget to review! I'll leave you guys with a little teaser:**

_Erin made a loud objecting noise and was about to start crying, but Sirius was not intimidated by her that easily. "No sweetie, butterflies belong in the air, not in your hands. Unless you're brewing a Deflating Draught of course, but I think you're a little young to understand anything about that yet."_

"If she inherited my talent in Potions she won't understand anything about that when she's in Hogwarts either," Mary noted dryly.

Sirius looked down at Erin, who had gone back to studying his T-shirt wit greath interest. "In general, let's just hope she inherited my brains and your beauty."

Mary sat up straight, shot him an indignant look and crossed her arms. "Are you saying that I'm not as clever as you?"

"Are you saying that I'm not as pretty as you?" Sirius countered, looking equally indignant.

He was joking, but for a brief moment, Mary didn't seem to be so sure about that. "I- That's not what I… You said-" She broke off when she saw the grin on his face. _"Sirius Black…" she said threatingly._


	84. Point of No Return

Chapter Eighty-Four

**Chapter ****Eighty-Four**

Remus and Peter weren't, to say the least, happy that James and Lily had not informed them before they moved to Godric's Hollow. The fact that Sirius and Mary _had_ known about the move, did not make things better. The other guys felt overlooked and - as Peter said – it obviously meant that James and Lily valued Mary's and Sirius's friendship over their loyalty. Of course James thought this lack of faith in their friendship was ridiculous, and had asked Sirius to talk to them and explain why he and Lily had only confided in him and Mary.

It took Sirius hours (and quite a few Butterbeers) to convince Peter of the fact that nothing between them had changed and that the Marauders were still very much alive. That Mary and Lily had not taken the place of him and Remus, and that things would stay the same, no matter what. At last, Peter sighed and said he thought Sirius had a point and that it didn't really matter anymore, since he now also knew where James and Lily were staying.

Talking sense into Remus turned out to be a lot easier, which did not make Sirius feel any less suspicious about him. On the contrary, because when Sirius said James wanted to tell Mary because he had to prove he really did trust her after all, Remus merely shrugged and said: "That's understandable." His response had been so indifferent that it left Sirius wondering if his friend even cared _at all_ that James and Lily had to move to Godric's Hollow.

Mary, of course, did not agree with this. According to her, Remus's response had been sensible, not indifferent. She believed Remus was just more intelligent than Peter and had figured out the reason why James had told them instead on his own. Sirius had to admit this was a likely scenario, but he could not get the thought of Remus being the traitor out of his head. Now that he had fully recovered from his injuries, he was watching Remus's every move. And no matter what Mary said, it _did_ look suspicious. Remus left the Order meetings early on more than one occasion and was always secretive on where he was going.

But whether Remus was the Order-spy or not, the decision to have James and Lily and Frank and Alice go into hiding seemed to be a good one. Dumbledore was constantly keeping a close eye on them and everyone who knew where the Potters and Longbottoms were hiding (which basically came down to him, Mary, Remus, Peter, Frank, Alice and Dumbledore himself) and because of that, July and August went by without many incidents or ominous developments. And although Sirius could not visit his friends and Harry quite as often as he would like (it was impossible to attend Harry's first birthday, and he had sent his gift, a toy broomstick, to the toddler by owl instead), he was grateful for the fact that so far, their plan seemed to be working.

The Summer of 1981 was an unlikely peaceful season. The amount of general attacks decreased a lot and some people even dared to hope that the Ministry had managed to put a stop to Voldemort and his Death Eaters after all. The Order was less optimistic; Dumbledore was convinced Voldemort was just biding his time until he had found a way to track down either the Potters or Longbottoms without any of the Order-members standing in his way.

Despite the constant worry on when exactly Voldemort would be ending this "sabbatical", Sirius enjoyed this peaceful period to the fullest. Maybe it was because he and Mary had known far less pleasant times and the realization that things could change in an instant, but they spent as much time as possible with their little family. They also made love more often than Sirius could remember and he felt closer to her than ever before.

Contrary to the sunny weather in July and August, September was downright despressing. There was no such thing as an Indian Summer; it was pouring with rain constantly and along with the strong wind, it made Sirius feel like it was already November. The only exception was the last weekend of September. It was on this blazing hot Saturday that Sirius took Mary and Erin to Hyde Park for a lazy afternoon in the park.

Sadly, they weren't the only Londoners who had come up with that idea and had to search long and hard before they found a rather distant and deserted spot next to a small pond. Sirius put down a square blanket under a large beech tree and sat down with his back against the bark. He was holding Erin in his arms while Mary, wearing a white dress with a red flower print, was laying stretched out on her back with her head on his stomach.

She was supposed to be reading a book, but Sirius could see that the hot and humid weather was making her sleepy; every now and then she closed her eyes and dropped her book to the ground before opening her eyes again and picking up her book to continue reading. When she had dozed off again, Sirius noticed her long hair was shining brightly in the sunlight. He smiled and reached out to pull a hand through her soft hair. It felt pleasantly warm and he continued stroking her for another while until Mary woke up. She glanced up at him and smiled. "How long was I out?"

He smiled. "Just this time?"

She looked surprised. "Wait, you mean I've dozed off before?"

"All the time."

She snorted. "Really? Hmmmm, I guess it's just that I love to feel the warmth of the sun on my face. And for some reason that feeling intensifies when my eyes are closed."

"Oh, I don't mind. I love looking at you when you are asleep. I spent most of the time doing that last night as well."

He shot her a mischievous look when he remembered what they did last night and Mary blushed. Sirius shrugged, feeling amused with ger shyness, while he gently grabbed hold of Erin's hands, who was trying to catch a tiny white butterfly. She made a loud objecting noise and was about to cry, but Sirius was not intimidated by her that easily. "No sweetie, butterflies belong in the air, not in your hands. Unless you're brewing a Deflating Draught of course, but I think you're a little too young to understand anything about that yet."

"If she inherited my talent in Potions she won't understand anything about that when she's in Hogwarts either," Mary noted dryly.

Sirius looked down at Erin, who had gone back to studying his T-shirt with great interest. "In general, let's just hope she inherited my brains and your beauty."

Mary sat up straight, shot him an indignant look and crossed her arms. "Are you saying that I'm not as clever as you?"

"Are you saying that I'm not as pretty as you?" Sirius countered, looking equally indignant.

He was joking, but for a brief moment, Mary did not seem to be so sure. "I- That's not what I… You said-" She broke off when she saw the grin on his face. "Sirius Black…" she said threatingly.

He laughed and held out his arms. Despite the warmth, Mary snuggled up close to him and let Sirius kiss her. When they broke apart, she rested her head on his shoulder and sighed contently as she watched Erin grabbing her hand. "I feel terrible about saying this," she said after a pause. "But I'm happy."

Sirius looked at her, a little surprised. "Why wouldn't you be?"

"Because of the war. Because of James and Lily, and Frank and Alice…"

"But they're all safe. Albus is seeing to that, remember?"

"I know," she sighed. "But I feel awful that we cannot spend much time with them. And they had to celebrate Harry's first birthday all by themselves, with only that nutty Bathilda woman to join them."

"She's not nutty. She wrote _A History of Magic_ and is a brilliantly skilled witch. James told me that Dumbledore said so himself."

Mary huffed. "Okay, she might be brilliant, but she's getting demented, at the very least. The things she's saying about Albus. Ridiculous really…"

"I don't know about that," he said. "But what I do know is that James and Lily are thankful for the fact they are safe, and that they cherish every moment when we or the others are visiting them." He looked up and saw that a cream vendor was putting up his stall a little ahead of them. "Hey, how about some ice cream?"

"Oh, good idea."

Sirius gently handed Erin over to her and got to his feet. "Should I get something for her as well?"

"I'm not sure," Mary said thoughtfully. "I think too much ice cream would give her a headeache and I don't know what she would like… You know what? Get me a vanilla ice cream and I'll let her taste it."

"Okay," he nodded and turned to walk to the cream vendor. He was almost there when he spotted a guy who was jogging with his dog. Sirius shot a longing look at the dog. He had not morphed into his Animagus form for so long… He looked back at a cuddling Mary and Erin for a moment and felt a grin cross his face. This should be fun.

A minute later, he was running in the park in his dog form. His paws were thundering on the ground and he easily zigzagged through the large and small groups of people sitting on the grass until he finally reached Mary and Erin. The look on his girlfriend's face when she spotted him was priceless, but Sirius liked Erin's expression even more. His daughter was giggling madly and clapped in her hands repeatedly.

Sirius the dog barked and playfully jumped around them before he made his way over to the pond. When he was about to get in, he heard Mary cry: "Oh, please don't!", but not a single scruffy hair on his body thought about listening to her and he jumped right in. The water was less cold than he expected, or perhaps his dog form was better prepared to handle the cold, and he swam around for a while while being encouraged by a cackling Erin and Mary, who shook her head but was smiling nevertheless. When he had finally crawled out of the pond, shaken himself dry and trotted back to Erin and Mary, a middle-aged couple was just passing by.

The man frowned when he watched how Mary let a happy Erin pat Sirius the dog, who was still panting slightly. "You'd better watch out there, young lady," he said. "He could become wild all of the sudden and bite your child. It's still an animal, after all…"

The corners of Mary's mouth twitched briefly when she looked up. "Oh, don't worry about that, sir. I know this dog pretty well and I can assure you he is harmless. Large, scruffy, ugly, yes…, but-"

Sirius gave her the dirtiest look he could muster as dog – did she just call him _ugly_? – and she laughed. "-He wouldn't hurt a fly," she finished brightly.

The man shrugged. "Just be careful, dear. Dogbites can be really nasty," he said as he and his wife walked on.

Sirius the dog let Mary teach Erin how to tickle a dog gently behind his ears for another while before he had enough and tripped over to a distant group of overgrown bushes to transform back to his human form. He used his wand to dry off his hair and clothes before walking over to the cream vendor and returning to Mary and Erin a few minutes later with the ice creams."

Erin was laying on her back on the blanket and coed happily when he sat down.

"Hi hi," he replied as he leaned in to kiss her little nose before looking at Mary. "I'm not so sure if I should be giving you an ice cream. Ugly, me?"

She grinned. "Well, have you ever looked into the mirror when you're Padfoot?"

"No," he replied with a mouthful of banana ice cream. "Why?"

"Let's just say that your dog form lacks all the elegance you normally have. You _are_ a scruffy and rather ugly dog. But if you'd like me to take you to a dog pedicure one day…"

Sirius glared at her. "Mary Woods…" he said threatingly.

She laughed and snatched the vanilla ice cream out of his hand. She continued to watch him with twinkling eyes when she let Erin taste a finger of ice cream (she seemed to like it) and Sirius was just comtemplating if he could get away with throwing her in the pond to teach her a lesson when he noticed that an owl was approaching them. And not just an ordinary owl. Rufus, James's owl, landed on the blanket and Sirius untied the letter it was carrying as soon as possible. Mary shot him a worried look. "I thought Albus emphasized it's crucial we don't send each other casual letters that often."

"This is no casual letter, Mary," he said anxiously while skimming the letter. "James writes that Lily has been attacked."

"Attacked?! But…" From the anxious sound of her voice, he could hear she was afraid to even ask. "By who? _When_?"

"Two Death Eaters appeared in Godric's Hollow and attacked her while she was shopping," Sirius said, looking down at the letter.

Mary clapped her hand in front of her mouth. "Is she alright?"

Sirius nodded darkly. "James says she got away in time with a only few minor injuries." He looked up at her. "But this is bad, Mare. _Really_ bad. It means the Death Eaters know where James and Lily are."

She stared at him. "But that means Voldemort knows as well."

He nodded and got back to his feet. "Exactly. I'm going over there now, see if I can help."

Mary stuffed the blanket, food and books into her bag and got up as well. "We're coming with you," she said as she held onto Erin a little more firmly. Sirius looked at them and shook his head. He could not let them go to Godric's Hollow. Not now, not when the Death Eaters or Voldemort himself would be wandering around. "No, it would be too dangerous."

"Even so, Lily needs me now."

He closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. "Please try to understand. I'm asking you to take Erin home while I'm there. I need to know you're safe or I can't think straight, okay?"

She shot him an indignant look that clearly said she was not agreeing at all, but after a moment of tense silence, she sighed. "Fine," she said grudgingly, hoisting Erin up a little higher in her arms. "But I want to hear everything was soon as you get back, okay?"

Sirius nodded, relieved that she was able to be sensible about this. He gave her and Erin a kiss and hugged them close for a moment before he walked back to the distant bushes and disapparated. He arrived at James and Lily's place shortly after. The cottage and its front garden looked strangely peaceful. The leaves of the birch tree next to the door were rhythmically rustling in the soft wind; a clear contradiction of what had happened in this quiet village earlier today. Sirius opened the front gate and made his way through the garden to the door. If he was not mistaken, he saw a a flash of ginger stripes disappear through a small crack in the garage on the way. "Hey there Chopper," he said, unable to prevent a smile from creeping up his face.

But the smile dried up on his face when he knocked on the door and James opened it almost at once. He looked pale and stressed. "Come in," he said, ushering him to step inside while nervously scanning the environment. He shut the door behind Sirius and immediately sealed it magically. "Just in case," he clarified when Sirius shot him a questioning look.

"Okay," Sirius nodded as he made his way to the small but cosy living room. "As long as you keep in mind that a magically sealed door won't stop any Death Eater from barging in here."

"I know that," James said. "But the protective line Albus drew around this house will. At least for now. But it's for me, so that I have at least the sense that _I'm_ also doing something constructive to protect my wife and child."

"I see where you're coming from," Sirius nodded as they walked into the living room.

Lily was sitting on an arm chair. She had been looking at Harry, who was in his cot playing with his toys, but got up form her seat when she saw them. "Hi," she said quietly.

Sirius bent down over the edge of the cot to say ruffle Harry's hair (who looked up – smiling - and called "Sir'us!") before he walked over to Lily and hugged her close and kissed her cheek. "I'm so glad you're alright."

She smiled sadly. "I'll live. Where's Mary?"

"I thought and she agreed – grudgingly – that it would be better if she went home with Erin. I hope you understand. What happened?"

"This morning I was walking down the street near the chapel when two Death Eaters apparated out of nowhere and tried to stun me."

"Who was it?"

"Bellatrix and her husband."

Ignoring Sirius's growl at hearing Bellatrix's name, she continued: "I managed to escape by running into the graveyard, those large tombstones caught most of the spells. I hid behind a large tree and could disapparate home."

"So then what?"

"James alerted Albus. And he came down at once to-"

"-To draw the protective line around the house," James said as he levitated a tray with three glasses of lemon icetea into the room. "And to discuss what we should do next."

"What are you talking about?" Sirius asked after he took a sip of the delicious cold drink.

"Well, only a select few people know that Lily and I live here. And it's been remarkably quiet these last two months, probably because Dumbledore is keeping an eye on everyone who knows. But now this happened, and that has to be proof that… I mean, why else would they come to Godric's Hollow? To look for a suitable place to throw Voldemort a birthday party? I don't think so. The last time anything remotely cool happened in this bloody hamlet must have been around 1623."

There was some bitterness in James's voice, but Sirius chose to ignore that. "Do you have any idea who…?"

Lily shook her head, but James shot him a close look. "No, but you do."

Sirius stared at him. How in Merlin's name did James know he was suspecting Remus? He had tried so hard to hide his true feelings from him and his other friends...

"You think it's Remus," his friend continued as he put down his glass down on the table.

Lily almost dropped her glass to the floor in shock. "Remus? Are you out of your mind?"

Sirius could not help but smile as he remembered how Mary had responded to his suspicions in the first place. "That's exactly what Mary said. Look guys, I'm not sure, and I could not be hoping more that I have this all wrong, but he I've been watching him lately and he does look suspicious."

James made a scornful sound. "Everyone starts looking suspicious when you keep a close eye on them, Sirius! I should know, I was delusional enough to suspect Mary."

"So… None of you believe it could be Remus?"

"No," James said, firmly shaking his head. "And I suggest you get this out of your head, Padfoot, before you're going to have to offer him a huge bunch of flowers as well."

Sirius smiled sadly and sighed. "Ill try. But the spy is still among us, James, you shouldn't forget that. It's one of us."

Lily pulled a hand through her hair. "It's like our worst nightmare is coming true. That one of our best friends would actually…"

She didn't finish that sentence and they all stared at the table for a moment. Eventually, Sirius looked at James. "So what now? You guys are going to have to move again?"

His friend shrugged. "Now that would be rather pointless, wouldn't it? But there is another possibility so that we can stay here."

"But how? If Voldemort knows-"

"The Fidelius Charm," he explained. "We'll have to find a Secret-Keeper, that's our best option at this point. Albus offered to be our Secret-Keeper, but I was hoping-"

"-I'll do it," Sirius said at once.

James shot him a look that expressed more than just gratitude; it was full of emotion and pride, and Sirius got the sense it was a glance only family members shared. It took him another moment to realize James was looking at him like Sirius was his brother, and he smiled. But at that very moment, Lily clearly said: "I said no, James."

James looked at her. "What?"

"I said you cannot ask this from Sirius. Not now."

"Oh, but it's alright," Sirius said quickly. "I want to do it."

"Do you, really?" Lily asked, and she did not look touched by his offer at all. On the contrary, she was shooting him a reproachful look. "Do you have any idea how dangerous this is going to be? What about Mary and Erin?"

"She'll understand. She wants to help too."

"As long as her own family is safe," she replied. "And if you become our Secret-Keeper, you'll not only endanger your own life, but that of her and Erin as well."

Sirius pulled a nervous hand through his hair. "I can go into hiding myself. Mary and Erin could go and stay with her parents…"

James sighed. "Listen Sirius, that you would even consider doing this means more to me than I can say. Of all my friends, you're the one I trust the most. But I agree with Lily to a certain extent, and I think you should discuss this with Mary first. See what she thinks…"

"She won't want you to do it," Lily said dismissively. "And I cannot blame her. If the tables were turned, I would not have wanted James to become Secret-Keeper either. Not if it endangered Harry's life."

But Sirius shook his head. "I'll be able to convince her eventually. I have to. There must be a way…" He got up from his chair. "I think it's better if I go home right now. The sooner we perform this Fidelius Charm, the better."

"Oh, but you should at least stay for dinner," Lily objected. "I haven't seen you in weeks. Tell us what you and Mary have been up to."

Sirius considered leaving at once for another moment but in the end, he decided staying over for dinner wouldn't matter much. And he had missed talking to James and Lily and hanging out with Harry a lot. While Lily was preparing dinner, he and James watched Harry flying around on the toy broomstick Sirius gave him for his birthday. It was amusing to see little Harry fly through the garden, and it was already obvious that the boy had a talent for flying. James was convinced he would be a great Quidditch player once he would be going to Hogwarts.

After dinner, Sirius said goodbye to James and Lily with the promise he would contact them about the Secret-Keepership as soon as possible. He disapparated home and arrived in the hallway of their apartment. When he walked inside, he noticed no one was there. But there was light coming from the first floor and he quietly ascended the stairs, thinking that Mary was busy putting Erin to sleep. He was right. As he was standing on the vestibule and peeked inside Erin's bedroom, he saw that Mary was singing a lullaby to their daughter, who was already dozing off at the sound of her soft voice.

Sirius suddenly felt an unpleasant lurch in his stomach. Two families he cared about the most, James's family and his own, were in need of his help. He had made a promise that he was going to protect them all, and he realized he could never do both without hurting one or the other. Sirius feared that Lily was right when she said Mary would not want him to become their Secret-Keeper, and he did not want to argue with her over this. But on the other hand, Sirius was sure about one thing: he was not the traitor, so becoming Secret-Keeper would mean he could keep his friends safe. He sighed and bit his lip. This was beyond Sophie's Choice; it was an impossible dilemma, and Sirius knew that as soon as he stepped inside Erin's room to talk to Mary, things would never be the same again.

End of Update

**A/N Sorry for the short delay, but some stuff came up, which is I why I didn't have time to post this chapter. I did now, and I hope everyone liked the happiness, because the next chapters are going to be full of drama. Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by and finally, a little teaser form the next chapter:**

"_So when is Albus going to perform the charm? It's him who came up with the idea in the first place, right?"_

Sirius did not answer immediately and in time, Mary would realize this was the moment where he was pondering over whether or not he would tell her the truth. "Eh well," he said after another moment of consideration, and Mary got the impression he was choosing his words very carefully. "Indeed, it was Albus's idea and he did offer to become the Secret-Keeper, but James was thinking… He prefers naming one of us, you see, and he has asked me if I want to ehm… Well, do it."

He shot her a nervous look, but Mary did not fully get what it meant at that moment, mostly because she was absolutely convinced that Sirius would never jeopardise her and Erin's life in that way. "Oh dear," she said, laughing nervously as she clapped her hand to her mouth. "But that's silly! Poor James, that he even thinks you would… You did let him go down easy, right? I mean, it's not like you don't want to help them, but obviously you cannot-"

She stopped talking mid-sentence when she spotted the guilty and, on second thought, downright miserable expression on his face. "You can_?"_


	85. Dead Woman Walking

**Chapter Eighty-Five**

Mary loved watching her daughter fall asleep, especially when it happened while she was singing a soft lullaby. Ever since Lily demonstrated that "Twinkle, twinkle little star" had a great effect on making their babies sleepy, she sang it to Erin every night. It often worked miracles as well, and considering Erin was usually sleeping through the night, she and Sirius were able to get enough hours of sleep of their own. Erin stretched and yawned in her light sleep and Mary smiled. She reached out and caressed her soft cheek. "Sweet dreams sweetie," she whispered before bending foreward to kiss her forehead.

It was at that moment that Mary got the feeling she was being watched by someone. For a brief moment, she got scared and instinctively reached for her wand that was sticking out the back pocket of her jeans. But then she established it was Sirius who was standing in the doorway, watching her with a troubled and unreadable expression on his handsome face. She instantly dropped her wand and ran over to fling her arms around his neck. "You're back."

Sirius hugged her and kissed her hair. "You were on your guard," he said softly while he let his chin rest on her head. "Very good."

Mary looked up at him. "I try to keep in mind what you said earlier…" She hesitated for a moment, because she knew she could be dreading the answer. "How's Lily?"

Sirius let go of her and walked to Erin's crib. "She's fine. They're fine," he clarified as he put his his hands on the railing. "For now, that is."

Mary watched how he bent down and kissed Erin's forehead. "What do you mean, for now?"

"The Death Eaters know they're hiding somewhere in Godric's Hollow. Albus has drawn a protective line around their house, but obviously that won't to keep Voldemort from finding them forever."

"What does that mean? Do they have to move again?"

He sighed. "That would be rather pointless. It's one of our group who spilled the beans in the first place, remember?"

She stared at him in horror. The thought that Lily and James were being betrayed by one of their closest friends, one of _them_, was almost even more disturbing than being chased down by the most evil wizard in ages. "So now what?" she asked. "They're just gonna sit and wait until Voldemort comes knocking on their door?!"

"Shhh!" Sirius pointed to Erin, who was moving restlessly in her sleep, before taking Mary by the arm and guiding her to the landing. "Not necessarily," he said as he quietly closed the door behind them. "There might be a way for them to stay in Godric's Hollow and be safe after all."

"How?"

"The Fidelius Charm."

"Of course," Mary said, nodding. She could definitely see that, as long as James and Lily would not select the traitor, a Secret-Keeper would be the solution to all their problems. She even wondered why she hadn't thought of that herself. "So when is Albus going to perform the charm? It's him who came up with the idea in the first place, right?"

Sirius did not answer immediately and in time, Mary would realize this was the moment where he was pondering over whether or not he would tell her the truth. "Eh well," he said after another moment of consideration, and she got the impression he was choosing his words very carefully. "Indeed, it was Albus's idea and he did offer to become the Secret-Keeper, but James was thinking… He prefers naming one of us, you see, and he asked if I want to ehm… Well, do it."

He shot her a nervous look, but Mary did not fully get what it meant at that moment, mostly because she was absolutely convinced that Sirius would never jeopordize her and Erin's life in that way. "Oh dear," she said, laughing nervously as she clapped her hand to her mouth. "But that's silly! Poor James, that he even thinks you would… You did let him go down easy, right? I mean, it's not like you don't want to help them, but obviously you cannot-"

She stopped talking mid-sentence when she saw the guilty and, on second thought, downright miserable expression on his face. "You _can_?"

Sirius stared at the floor. "Look, I told you before I would do anything to help and they need someone they can trust."

Mary stared at him in disbelief. Were her ears deceiving her? Or did Sirius just actually confirm he had volunteered to become the Secret-Keeper? Part of her wanted to ask the most obvious question of why they could not trust Dumbledore instead, but a sickening thought made it impossible to say anything at all. Her throat closed up when she started to realize that by instantly agreeing to James's proposal, Sirius just proved the one thing she had always feared: that in the end, when time had come to make crucial decisions, he would always choose his friends over her. Her and Erin…

This devastating realization got followed by a sharp pain in her heart and without a word or looking at Sirius, Mary brushed past him. "Mary?" he asked worriedly and he frowned after her, but she did not reply. Black spots were dancing in front of her eyes as she dizzily entered their bedroom and carefully sat down on the edge of the bed, trying hard not to faint. A half-empty bottle of red elf-wine was still standing on the nightstand; a silent reminder of their romantic encounter from last night. There was nothing cheerful or happy about tonight, but Mary reached for the winebottle anyway. She had just poured herself a glass and was numbly gulping down the red fluid when Sirius entered the room. He leaned against the doorpost and once again seemed to consider his words before speaking, knowing perfectly well that she was a timebomb waiting to go off at any second. "Love, I don't you think you understand what I-"

She snorted mirthlessly and downed the remains of the wine in one go. "Oh please, I think I understood you just fine, thank you very much."

She poured the last bit of wine into her glass and dropped the bottle to the floor. A few drops were dripping on the carpet, but Mary could not care less. If they were really going to be bait for Voldemort and the Death Eaters, those drops would become her own blood soon enough. She was still fiddling with the glass as she stared into the distance when Sirius crouched down in front of her. He gently took the glass and placed it back onto the nightstand before he took her hands in his. It felt confusing: on one hand, the way his thumb stroke her fingers felt familiar and right but at the same time, it was like the touch of a stranger. She pulled her hands away and looked the other way. "Mare," Sirius said pleadingly, and there was a note of urgency in his voice. "Please let me explain-"

"Explain?!" she snapped. "Why bother? It's quite simple, isn't it? James asked you to become the Secret-Keeper and you said yes. And that, Sirius, pretty much says it all." She laughed bitterly when she suddenly remembered something else. "Turns out Brice was right after all."

Sirius shot her a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?"

"She once warned me that when things would get really dangerous, you would always chose your friends over me and what do you know? Here we are, and you're _actually_ choosing James and Harry over me and Erin."

"Now wait a minute, that is _not_ fair."

"Which reminds me," Mary continued as if she hadn't hear him and looked at Sirius for the first time since he had kneeled down before her. "What did Lily say? Does she even know James asked you to do this?"

"She was there."

"And she agreed?" she asked, feeling a second painful pang in her heart.

He smiled sadly. "No, she doesn't. That is the wonderful and at the same time very disturbing thing about Lily Potter. She's too selfless for her own good. Even now Voldemort is practically standing in her front garden, she's still thinking of you…"

Mary could hardly believe her ears. Was he trying to make her look guilty here? _He_ was the one who volunteered to become the Secret-Keeper. "Oh well I'm sorry," she sneered. "Sorry for thinking of my own family first. I want to help protecting Lily, James and Harry as much as you do, but I simply refuse to put Erin's life on the line."

He sighed. "I'm not blaming you of anything. But you must understand I cannot just stand there and do nothing. They're my family too, and Harry… Think of Harry."

Mary snorted angrily. "Oh, and what am I?" she said loudly, her blue eyes glinting indignantly. "_Just_ the mother of your child?"

She could see that Sirius was about to lose his temper as well. "Keep your voice down or Erin will wake up! And no, of course not. Mary, I love you more than anything on this sodding planet. And didn't I say that I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you and Erin safe?"

Mary knew he was being sincere, but she was too upset to listen and pretended she did not hear that last part. She got up from the bed to pick up the winebottle from the floor. "God, on some level I can even understand why you're choosing James over me. But Erin? Don't you realize that by not immediately turning down this proposal, you already chose them over her?"

"It's not even fully decided yet." After a moment of silence, he added: "And I think you're being a little unreasonable here."

"_I'm_ being unreasonable?" she yelled, stamping her foot on the floor in anger and frustation. For a second, she was about to throw the winebottle at Sirius's head but with a mighty effort, she put it down on the table with a bang instead. "Erin is your own flesh and blood, Sirius, and the minute you agree to this you'll not only be signing your own death warrant, but you'd be putting our lives in danger as well!" she cried shrilly, overpowered by a powerful feeling of sadness and despair. Why didn't Sirius see that he was about to sacrifice them to Voldemort?

"Will you just shut up?" Sirius replied testily. "Or Erin will wake up."

Too late. Their "flesh and blood" had just started to cry hysterically. Mary was torn between a longing to comfort Erin or to run away. But after another moment, she reasoned that Sirius could take care of their daughter while she was out. What she wanted more than anything was to be on her own. She needed fresh air and time alone to think. And, as she established with another pang in her heart, she needed to get away from Sirius. She ran a trembling hand through her hair. "I can't take this anymore," she stammered before turning around and walking out of the bedroom.

"Where do you think you're going?" Sirius called angrily as he walked after her and noticed she had not stopped in front of Erin's door.

"I need time alone…"

"What?!"

"T-to think, to realize what this means, what you're doing to us."

She said this without looking back and was about to hurry down the stairs when Sirius grabbed her from behind. "No, it's not safe out there."

"I can take care of myself," she replied and tried to struggle free, but he just strengthened his grip. It oddly reminded her of a certain New Year's Eve party at Hogwarts so many years ago. Back then she had freed herself by hitting him in the face and this time, she pinced her elbow in his stomach. A different tactic with the same result, because Sirius let her go at once. "Just stay and calm down," he said as his eyes flicked from her to a crying Erin in her bedroom and back.

Mary did not reply and stormed down the stairs. She thought of putting on her robes, but figured it would still be warm enough outside. It had been an unusual hot day after all… Right when she was about to open front door, she heard Sirius bolting down the stairs behind her. A wailing Erin was laying against his chest. "Listen, I know I didn't think this through. I'm sorry, but I-"

"-Save your apology, I don't want to hear it," she replied coolly and opened the door.

"Don't Mary," he said warningly while gently patting Erin on the back in an attempt to calm her down. "The Death Eaters could be out there, waiting just around the corner to get you."

Mary was already standing in the dooropening but turned around at these words. He was looking sincerely worried, but she could also detect a glint of sheer annoyance in his eyes. She already was furious with him, but that reproachful glare was the limit. "Ooooh, and wouldn't that be convenient? Because with me and Erin gone, there will be nothing else standing in the way of protecting your _real_ family!"

Mary slammed the door shut and stormed off. Sirius did not follow her and she walked down the street, running fast at first, but slowing down after a while she kept on walking. Crossing one street after the other, rounding corner after corner and crossing square after square. She was hardly noticing where her legs were taking her, but the sky was pleasantly cool and she breathed in deeply. It calmed her down slightly, but did not take away that feeling of a stone plunging right into her stomach. Sirius actually believed it would be the right thing to become the Secret-Keeper. He simply didn't see what that would mean for their family. They would have to go into hiding, just like James and Lily, and there would still be a chance the Death Eaters would try to get to him by killing her or Erin. It just hurt so much that Sirius's love was not as unconditional as she'd always thought it would be.

Mary sighed and leaned back against the wall of a grocer. She closed her eyes for a moment before looking up at the dark sky. "You're probably aching up there to tell me "I told you so"," she muttered darkly. Only a second later did she regret she said that. Brice would have never wanted anything like this to happen, even though her friend turned out to know Sirius better in the end. "Sorry," Mary told her quietly and fidgeted with her engagement ring. When she looked around the street, she suddenly realized she was only a few blocks away from where Remus lived. Feeling reluctant to go home and see Sirius, Mary made up her mind and walked to his house.

Remus was as understanding as ever. He just listened to her emotional tirade on what Sirius was about to do, how reckless and irresponsible he was, what the possible consequences would be for her and Erin and whether he had ever loved her at all. Remus remained calm and only occassinally said something while he let her rage. He only put an arm around her when she started to cry before asking if she wanted to stay over for the night. Mary mumbled she would appreciate that because she did not want to see Sirius. Remus replied that was fine, as long as she would write an owl to let him know she was safe and would be spending the night over at his place. Mary agreed grudgingly and wrote the shortest note she had ever written to Sirius. She had no intention in hiding she was still furious with him and hoped that note would make Sirius realize he had seriously crossed the line.

It was no surprise that Mary did not sleep well that night. She got up at the same time as Remus, who had to get ready for work. He told her she could stay there as long as she wanted, but Mary knew that would not make things better. She realized she couldn't hold off talking with Sirius forever, but she still didn't want to see him. Not now, not so soon. She needed to figure out what she was going to do next. Running off with Erin to be on the safe side or staying loyal to their friends and Sirius and jeopordize her life. And that of their daughter…

After another moment of hesitation, Mary concluded she wanted to visit Lily and James first. She was anxious to find out how they were doing, and also to learn why they needed Sirius to be their Secret-Keeper.

Mary apparated in front of the front garden of the cottage in Godric's Hollow. She tried to open the garden gate but it wouldn't budge. She frowned, but then she realized she had walked right into Dumbledore's protective border. Mary was just wondering how she could let Lily and James know she was standing in front of their house when she spotted a familiar mop of untidy black hair above the hedge. "Mary, is that you?"

"Yeah. Hi James," she replied.

He appeared right next to the gate. His eyes flicked from one corner of the deserted street to the other before he reached for his wand and tapped the gate twice. It opened with an ominous cracking. "Get in, quickly."

Mary obeyed and crossed the border. The second she had walked into the Potter's garden, James was already magically restoring the protective line around the house. "Precaution," he explained with a shrug.

"And not without reason," she replied with a sad smile. "How are you?"

"Coping." He shot her a close look. "Sirius was looking for you earlier."

Mary bit her lip. How much did James know? In the end, she decided to stay as neutral as possible. "I thought he might," she shrugged. "Where is Lily?"

"In the kitchen," James replied. "She's having old Bathilda over for tea."

Mary rolled her eyes. "Oh great. Well, I guess I should join their little tea party then, eh?"

The flash of a sarcastic grin crossed his tired face. "Have fun."

This time Mary really did roll her eyes and made her way over to the house. The front door was open and she walked to the kitchen, where she could already hear the high and slightly hoarse voice of Bathilda resounding through the house. "And that, my girl," she was saying loudly, "Is when Albus and Gellert left Godric's Hollow, determined to change the world together. And it didn't take them long to-"

Bathila's speech got interrupted by Lily who jumped up at the sight of Mary. "Oh, thank goodness you're alright!"

She hurried over to Mary to give her a close hug, who shrugged. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Lily shot her a look that clearly said that she knew all about Sirius looking for her and Mary sighed. "Really, I'm fine. I spent the night at Remus. Hello Bathilda."

"Good day, dear. It's lovely to see you again, this time without that beautiful baby girl of yours?"

She smiled apologetically. "I'm afraid so."

"Ah well," Bathilda said after sipping her tea. "You know, I was just telling Lily-"

Saved by the bell, or Harry actually. He was just standing up in his cot in the corner of the kitchen, because he had spotted her. "'Ary!" he babbled. "'Ary! 'Ary!"

"Hey there, Harry," Mary said as she walked over to the cot and playfully ruffled his hair. "Not on your big broomstick today, huh?"

"He can't," Lily said as she put down a goblet of tea on the table for Mary. "Too risky."

Mary sighed and once again found herself thinking that a war was no world for children to grow up in. "I'm sorry about that," she said before blowing into her hot tea. After taking a careful sip, she looked up at Bathilda. "I'm sorry you were interrupted before. You were telling Lily that…"

She made an encouraging wave with her hand and Bathilda chuckled. "I was just trying to convince Lily of the fact that Albus Dumbledore used to be a close friend of Gellert Grindelwald."

Mary stared at her. "Grindelwald."

The old woman smiled mysteriously. "Huhum…"

"_The_ Gellert Grindelwald, the dark wizard who built Nurmengard?"

"The one and only."

Mary exchanged a glance with Lily, who looked a little amused, and did not know whether to laugh or cry. The thought of a younger Albus Dumbledore being close to that numerous dark wizard they had read about in History of Magic seemed ridiculous, at the very least. "Eh well, that is eh…"

Bathilda chuckled. "You wouldn't be the first one to be deceived by Albus Dumbledore. Oh, don't get me wrong, he is a great wizard and a good man, but when he was younger… Well, I was their neighbour after all, I've seen enough. Brilliant young boys… Ah Lily, thanks for the tea, but I think it is time to go home. Mary dear, it was lovely to see you. Goodbye ladies."

And after patting Harry on his head, Bathilda left the house, softly whistling a tune to herself. Mary stared after her for a moment. "That woman is…"

"Losing it?" Lily suggested as she refilled her own goblet with tea.

"I was going for delusional, but this works too."

She sipped her tea and Lily shot her a close look. "Aren't you going to tell me what happened last night?"

Mary stared down at her tea. "I guess you already know all about it. James asked Sirius to be Secret-Keeper and he said yes."

Lily nodded slowly. "Without my consent, though. Sirius was here last night. You should have seen him. He apparated in front of the house, with a hysterical Erin in his arms. He was pretty much freaking out himself… You guys had a row, didn't you?"

Mary nodded as the tears trickled down her cheeks. "I just… I was so convinced that after Erin, he saw us as a real family, his most important family. But he instantly agrees to doing this without thinking of the consequences, what this could do to me and Erin. It hurts so much that after all this time, he's still choosing his friends, the other Marauders, over me."

Lily didn't say a word for a long time. At last, she sighed. "But look at it from his perspective, Mare. Whether you like it or not, James and Sirius are… brothers. There's a bond between those two even I don't understand, but I've learned to accept that they care about each other in a special way. They have been through so much, you know? But I know James doesn't care less about me than Sirius. It's just… well, love on a different level. And…" she hesitated.

"But-"

"-And I think that a little understanding from your side wouldn't hurt."

Mary stared at her, but her friend's glare did not falter. "What are you talking about?"

Lily sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Sirius is doing everything he can to keep you and Erin safe. He hasn't even decided if he's going to do it."

"And if he decides that he _does_ want to do it?"

"Then I won't stop him. And I'm not saying that you're being selfish here. It's only reasonable that your first concern is Erin, but like I said… Try, even just for one night, try to see it from his side. Let him explain. Sirius loves you more tha anything, Mare. He looked really miserable last night."

Mary felt her throat close up and conjured a tissue to blow her nose. "How did we end up in this mess, Lil?"

"I don't know, but I always like to keep in mind something Hagrid once told me: what's comin' will come, an' we'll meet it when it does."

She had said the last part in Hagrid's low voice and Mary could not help but smile. She got up from her seat to give Lily a fierce hug. "Well, I might not become your Secret-Keeper, but I'll still try to find another way to keep you guys safe."

Lily hugged her back. "I'm just glad you're here. Are you staying over for dinner?"

* * *

Mary spent the entire day and most part of the night at Godric's Hollow. When she felt she could no longer postpone the confrontation with Sirius, she sighed and announced it was time to go home. She said goodbye to Harry and hugged James and Lily, telling them she would drop by with Erin as soon as possible. James walked her out. "I'll see you again soon, okay?" she said, looking up at him.

James nodded and softly pinched her hand. "Don't be too hard on Pads."

Mary smiled sadly as a reply before disapparating home. The lights in the house were all switched off, which was not all that strange, considering it was already past eleven. She quietly made her way up the stairs, half-expecting that Sirius would jump out of one of the rooms with his wand at the ready. She could be a Death Eater after all… But this did not happen. She quickly brushed her teeth and checked on Erin. Their little girl was sleeping peacefully and Mary gently tickled her cheek. "I missed you," she whispered softly.

After another minute she finally walked over to their bedroom. Sirius was laying in bed, apparently asleep. But when she climbed in as well and lay down next to him, he immediately turned around. At first he just looked at her. "You're home," he said at last.

Mary shrugged, avoiding his gaze. The lights were out but it was a vey clear sky and the bright moonlight got reflected in his grey eyes. "I couldn't stay away forever, could I?"

He softly stroke her cheek with his hand and she did not push him away. "I'm glad you came home."

Mary gulped and wondered if she should apologize for something when she didn't think she was the one who was wrong. "Look, I-"

"Mare please," Sirius said and this time she did look at him. "I realize this will sound really mysterious, but I think I've finally found a way…"

She frowned. "A way to do what?"

"I might have figured out how we can keep everyone, that means us _and_ Lily, James and Harry safe."

"And how are you going to do that?"

He sighed. "I… I can't tell you. At least not yet. I'm afraid you're just going to have to trust me on this one. Can you do that?"

There was silence and for a moment, nothing else could be heard than two hysterical cats outside who were chasing each other. Then, as a devastating realization was slowly sinking in, a sole tear was trickling down over his fingers and her cheek. "Well, that's the problem, Sirius," Mary whispered. "I don't think I still can."

-End of Update-

**A/N** **Only two more chapters and an epilogue to go now. Hope you guys liked this chapter. It was hard to let them fight like, but I believe Mary had all the right to be furious, even though I can understand where Sirius is coming from as well. Either way, the end is very, **_**very**_** close now ;)**

**Don't forget to leave a review when you drop by. Here's a little teaser of what you can expect next:**

_Mary bit her lip and watched Sirius quietly for another minute while he was absent-mindedly shoving the remains of a lamb chop around on his plate. Then finally, as she made up her mind, she sighed. "Fine, then go."__anyone__ while I'm gone, okay?"_

_He looked up at her in surprise. "Go?"_

_"Yes, go check on them. It's what you want, isn't it? You've been acting weird all week, and today is no exception. Won't it put your mind at ease if you visit them and see that they're doing fine?"_

_He was staring at her as if she was making water burn in front of his eyes. "Yes, b-"_

_"Then go!" Mary said resolutely as she put Erin down on her lap. "Check on them, have a cup of coffee together and then come back home and be you again. You know you won't rest before you know they're okay, Sirius and frankly, you're getting on my nerves."_

_He looked at her and seemed to be fighting an internal dilemma before he nodded slowly. "Okay," he said. "I think I will do that."_

_He got up from the chair and acciod his robes from the hallstand. When he had put them on, he looked around the messy kitchen. "But what about-?"_

_"-Don't worry about that," Mary said dismissively. "It'll give me something to do while you're gone. Please don't take too long, because I feel worried too."_

_Sirius nodded. "I'll go by bike in case the Death Eaters are trailing me," he replied as he walked out of the kitchen. He was already halfway the living room when he suddenly stormed back in and gave her the most fierce hug in days. "Don't open the door to anyone, okay?"_


	86. Halloween

**Chapter ****Eighty-Six**

Over the next three weeks, Mary tried to spend the days as normal as possible, but this was easier said than done. The constant worry if Lily, James and Harry would be alright was always in the back of her mind, whether she was working at St. Mungo's or staying at home to take care of Erin. Every day that went by without the notice of an attack was a relief. It wasn't possible to write or visit Lily every day because that would be too risky, but Mary had asked Dumbledore to send daily updates on how their friends were doing. Aside from that, Mary still had Sirius, who seemed to know a lot more than she did.

Speaking of Sirius: they weren't exactly fighting. Mary wasn't even sure if she was still angry with him, but something had definitely changed between them. No matter how hard she tried, some of her rock solid trust in him had been lost forever. However, she had thought a lot about what Lily told her earlier and, to a certain extent, had to agree that James was the closest thing to a brother Sirius had ever known. She had tried to picture herself in his situation if Jenna would have been in danger and could now understand Sirius's dilemma a little bit better. On the other hand, it remained an extremely bitter pill to take that she and Erin weren't automatically the most important people in his life.

Mary still didn't know if Sirius had become the Potter's Secret-Keeper. She had not forgotten that he managed to figure something out that would keep both of their families safe, but had no idea if he had kept his promise or stuck to the original plan. Mary preferred it this way. Being left in the dark like this wasn't exactly soothing, but on some level, it was better not-knowing if Sirius was still choosing Lily and James over her in the end. And this way, she still had that final and tiny straw of hope that she might be the most important person in his life after all.

She still wasn't sure if she was going to run off with Erin. Since she didn't know for sure if Sirius was the Secret-Keeper or not, she was very reluctant to leave him, even though he had made her promise him she would run if something bad happened. Her suitcase had been standing next to her bed for the last two weeks and so far, she had failed to force herself to at least pack the most necessary things, should she and Erin be forced to leave in a hurry. It had taken Mary another few days to realize that this wasn't just because she didn't want to abandon Sirius. She also knew she couldn't possibly leave James and Lily and the others behind. Not now, not like this. All of them were still in this together and if Voldemort would have chased down her family instead, she would have liked them to stay as well.

On the morning of Halloween, Mary was sitting at the kitchen table. She was feeding a pulpish mixture of mashed bananas, strawberries and oranges to Erin, but her daughter wasn't very feeling hungry at the moment. She was in a stubborn mood and simply refused to open her mouth. Mary was making motorlike sounds as she moved the spoon around in the air to make the food more tempting to Erin, who was following the spectacle attentively, her big grey eyes not losing the spoon out of sight for a second. "Vrrrrroooom," Mary said, imitating the sound of a motor as she slowly moved the spoon to Erin's mouth. "Look, the aeroplane is coming. There it is… Open your mouth and- There you go," she said, relieved that Erin was taking the bait.

"Why are you doing that?"

Sirius was leaning against the doorpost of the kitchen. He was watching them with a frown on his tired face. No, not tired, Mary corrected herself as she shot him a closer look. On second thought, he was looking moody and somewhat restless. "I'm just trying to get her to eat this, that's all."

"I can see that," he replied grumpily before directing two pieces of bread to the toaster with his wand. "What I don't get is why you're using those things Muggles use to fly."

"They're called aeroplanes, Sirius."

"Yeah, those. Our daughter won't be growing up with those things, she'll be travelling by using the floo network, a broom or a Portkey."

Mary frowned at him. "I'm just using it as an example to get her to eat, nothing more. Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

Sirius angrily flung his pieces of toast to a plate and roughly added some marmelade. "Erin will be raised in a magical family. She will never travel by plane."

"Really?" Mary retorted indignantly, starting to get annoyed as well. "And what if my mum and dad would like to take us on a trip abroad some day?"

Sirius didn't answer and shrugged moodily while he was chewing on his toast. Mary shrugged, decided to drop the subject and got back to feeding Erin, who now appeared to be more willing to eat the snack without the airplane-act. "There's a good girl," Mary smiled after another few minutes when Erin had swallowed the final bite. "Look," she said after carefully wiping Erin's mouth with a napkin. "Why don't you go outside and run a few blocks or something? As Padfoot, I mean. It may relax you a bit."

Sirius had been staring out of the window the entire time, but now he was finally turning around. There was a pained expression on his face. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, looking down at her. "I shouldn't have snapped on you like that. I just…"

"Sirius, it's okay. I understand."

"No, you don't," he said urgently as he walked over and crouched down next to her chair. "I'm just extremely worried about something."

"We all are," Mary said and gently stroke his hair.

Sirius closed his eyes for a moment. "I just… I have a really bad feeling about today, Mare. Something's not right."

Mary sighed and - before she could stop herself - said: "Well, if there's someone who could know that for sure, it's you."

Sirius jerked up his head and for a brief moment, there was a note of sheer annoyance in his eyes. "Stop that, Mary. You know I can't-"

"-Yeah, I know," she interrupted quietly. "I know you can't."

She was now stroking his cheek and he placed his hand over hers. "But you don't trust me anymore," he said hesitantly, shooting her a close look.

Mary hesitated. "I don't… Not like before, anyway."

Sirius sighed and tenderly kissed the palm of her hand before he got back up. "I hate this… But it'll have to do for now. I'm pretty sure I know what I'm doing. It's just that something seems to be bugging me, but I cannot put my finger on it, you know?"

Mary shrugged. "As long as you don't tell me – and I know you can't – I don't. And now you'll have to excuse me, because I have to take Erin to bed before I can start preparing tonight's dinner."

She picked up Erin and carried her out of the kitchen without looking at Sirius. Mary knew perfectly well she was hurting him with her curt behaviour, but she didn't want to conceil how much his decision to keep her out of this was hurting her a lot as well. She sighed as she lay Erin down in her crib, who yawned and stretched lazily with a content smile on her face. She was completely obvlious to what her parents were going through at the moment which, as Mary decided when she was quietly closing the door, was probably for the best.

* * *

Sirius remained restless the entire day. He wandered around the house without doing anything constructive at all and kept checking his watch every five minutes. Whenever Mary asked him what was going on, she just got a snappy response (at first) and a quick but sincere apology (shortly after). One thing was for sure: _something_ was going on, and if it made Sirius this agitated, it certainly wasn't good. He was a master at hiding his true feelings, but Mary had come to know him well over the years, and she was able to decipher some of his frowns or the way his shoulders were edged together. What she thought she could see was that he seemed to regret something. And Mary wasn't sure if it was because she knew his Animagus form was a dog, but in a way, he perfectly resembled a nervous or angry dog that had pulled his tail between his legs, anxious of what might happen to him.

But Mary did as she were told and minded her own business. She focused on making a lovely dinner on this particularly stormy Halloween instead and hoped that the food could distract him a little bit. Unlike previous years when all of them had spent this evening together, it would be just her, Sirius and Erin, but Mary still tried to cook something special. She had borrowed Lily's famous recipy for pumpkin soup and even though it didn't taste quite as good as the original (or the one the house-elves used to make at Hogwarts), it was not bad at all. Together with the homemade bread and grilled lamb chops as the main course, it made a nice diner. Simple, but special nevertheless.

Even Sirius noticed Mary had gone out of her way to put a great dinner together. "You did wonderful, love," he told her as he walked into the kitchen with Erin in his arms. "Thank you," he added softly as he hugged her close for a moment.

For some reason, this tender moment caused Mary's throat to close up, who quickly dismissed the wetness of her eyes to the cutting of the onions she had been doing only moments before. The truth was that she was feeling sad that her friends couldn't be with them tonight. Whether Sirius was getting this or not, he didn't say anything about it, and Mary was grateful for that. However, while they were eating in silence, she noticed that his eyes kept darting to the windows on either side of the house, as if he was expecting something – or someone – to show up at any moment. At last, Mary sighed and put down her cutlery. "Okay, what's going on?"

"Nothing," Sirius replied immediately and without looking at her.

Mary crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows at him. "You're acting like something could happen at any second. What is it?"

"What- I, nothing!"

"Sirius…"

He put his elbows on the table and supported his head in his hands. "I told you earlier today. Something's off."

Mary knew she would never get an answer for her next question and she sighed before asking: "Please just tell me what it is, Sirius. Maybe if we talked ab-"

"-Nohooo," he interrupted her impatiently. "Will you knock it off! That's not possible and you know that."

Mary bit her lip and watched him quietly for another minute while he was absent-mindedly shoving the remains of a lamb chop around on his plate. Then finally, she made up her mind and sighed. "Fine, then go."

He looked up at her in surprise. "Go?"

"Yes, go check on them. It's what you want, isn't it? You've been acting weird all week, and today is no exception. Won't it put your mind at ease if you visit them and see that they're doing fine?"

He was staring at her as if she was making water burn in front of his eyes. "Yes, b-"

"Then go!" Mary said resolutely as she put Erin down on her lap. "Check on them, have a cup of coffee together and then come back home and be you again. You know you won't rest before you know they're okay, Sirius and frankly, you're getting on my nerves."

Sirius looked at her and seemed to be fighting an internal dilemma before he nodded slowly. "Okay," he said. "I think I will do that."

He got up from the chair and acciod his robes from the hallstand. When he had put them on, he looked around the messy kitchen. "But what about-?"

"-Don't worry about that," Mary said dismissively. "It'll give me something to do while you're gone. Please don't take too long, because I feel worried too."

Sirius nodded. "I'll go by bike in case the Death Eaters are trailing me," he replied as he walked out of the kitchen. He was already halfway the living room when he stormed back in and gave her the most fierce hug in days. "Don't open the door to _anyone_ while I'm gone, okay?"

"Of course I won't," she answered, a little surprised by the obvious emotion in his voice.

"And if anything happens, you take Erin and apparate straight to Moody, understood? Not Remus, not Peter, not Frank and Alice: Moody."

"What? Why?"

"_Understood_?"

"Well yes, but-"

"Just do it," he whispered in her hair. And with a quick kiss on Erin's forehead and her mouth, he was gone. Mary, who was rocking a whimpering Erin in her arms, watched him fly off and disappear in the stormy night through the kitchen window with a frown on her face.

"Well Erin," she muttered quietly as she looked down on her daughter, "Mummy has been through quite a lot with with daddy, but this was very odd indeed."

Erin stared back at her with her curious eyes. "Da!" she cried excitedly.

"Yes, daddy will be back soon, sweetie," Mary replied absent-mindedly while she decided to take Erin upstairs.

* * *

But tonight, Erin did not fall asleep that easily. The Halloween-storm was becoming more vehement by the hour; the wind was howling outside and rain drops were lashing against the windows with thundering force. Mary had to abandon the kitchen mess more than once to go and soothe Erin. When she had finally finished cleaning up and Erin seemed to be soundly asleep for a moment, Mary put down her wand and a glass of apple juice on the table and flopped down on the couch with a basket of sweets. She had to ignore every brave child and its parents who were trying to defy the storm and called at the door, because she had promised Sirius to keep it locked at all times. But it would be a waste to throw everything away. Mary sighed and put an acid drop in her mouth. She flicked through a copy of the Evening Prophet but couldn't concentrate; she was feeling more and more worried about Lily and James _and_ Sirius, who had already been gone for over an hour. She was almost relieved when Erin started crying yet again.

Mary hurried up the stairs and into Erin's bedroom. "Shhh, it's alright," she said in an soothing voice and picked up her anxious daughter. Humming "Twinkle, twinkle little star" didn't make Erin sleepy this time but the familiar sound of Mary's voice calmed her down a little bit. Nevertheless, she stayed with Erin for another while until her daughter's breathing had become deeper and steady.

Mary quietly closed Erin's door behind her and tiptoed back to the stairs. It was at that moment that she heard a mumbling voice coming from downstairs. Several voices as a matter of fact, and they did not sound familiar. Or friendly, because if Mary was not mistaken, she was hearing the word "Mudblood" being said more than once. Her eyes widened in shock as she realized that this could only mean one thing: Death Eaters. In her own house? Death Eaters had had the nerve to apparate _directly_ into her house? Mary's daze was quickly turning into indignation and anger. She was going to teach those fools a lesson for being so rude. Hardly realizing that she would have to duel several Death Eaters at the same time, she took a step towards the stairs while her hand simultaneously shot to the pocket of her jeans.

Her heart stopped. Her wand… _Where_ was her wand? Oh God… She had left it on the table downstairs when she had to hurry upstairs to Erin's room. Mary snapped her eyes shut in fear. How could she have been so stupid? Without a wand, she wouldn't stand a chance against any wizard. She had to come up with something else instead.

"Run, apparate to Moody," she thought and hurried back to Erin's room. She had almost woke up the little girl when she realized that it would be pointless: she could not perform any magic without a wand, and that included Apparition. What was she going to do? It would only be a matter of time before those Death Eaters would come looking for her upstairs.

Mary looked at the window and as if by a miracle, she spotted an owl that was sitting on the window-still. She quickly opened the window – it creaked ominously loud – and the owl fluttered inside. She quickly took off the letter and, noticing the tiny handwriting, concluded it was a note from Dumbledore. It read:

_Dear Mary,_

_I have visited James and Lily earlier today.  
They are well, and so is little Harry, despite the  
fact that he, while riding his toy broomstick, has  
now crashed into the garden fence twice. James  
was very amused, Lily not so much.  
I will send word again as soon as possible._

_-Albus_

Mary didn't have time to write him a reply. She couldn't even smile while she was scribbling down a brief s.o.s.-note with trembling hands. She did consider sending the letter back to Dumbledore, but – knowing that he was meeting the Headmaster of Beauxbatons in France – reasoned it would be better to alert someone else. After another moment of hesitation, she made up her mind. Mary did not address the note to Moody, like Sirius had asked her to, but sent it to Remus instead. Sirius could believe whatever he wanted about their friend, but Mary had decided against that a long time ago. Besides, Remus was not living that far away, so it wouldn't take him long to get here. Mary witnessed how the owl tried to fly out of the window and almost got blown back inside before it managed to find a way to battle the strong wind. She closed the window and knew there was one more thing left to do. Going downstairs and keeping the Death Eaters there, away from Erin; either by talking, pleading or fighting, but she had to retard them and stay alive long enough for Remus to arrive at the scene.

Mary gripped the railing of the stairs tightly for a moment and noticed how sweaty her palms were; they kept slipping off. After taking another deep breath and forcing herself to remain calm, she walked down the stairs pretending she didn't know what she was walking into. However, the very moment Mary entered the living room, she had already established that she was in deep trouble. There were four Death Eaters standing in the middle of the room; two of them were still wearing masks, but the others weren't. Mary didn't recognize the man, who was tall and had a sharp face with black hair and a modelled goatee, but the woman looked somewhat familiar. Her dark and heavy-lidded eyes glinted maliciously when she looked up and spotted her. "Well, well, look who has decided to join us."

Mary noticed that the woman was holding her wand in her hands and asked: "What are you doing in my house, why are you here?"

"Such inhospitality!" the woman sneered contemptuously and the other Death Eaters sniggered.

Mary was still standing next to the stairs, silently praying to Merlin that Erin would not wake up. She forced herself to look anything but scared when she shot the witch an angry look. "Who the hell are you?"

The woman made a scornful sound. "Didn't my dearest cousin ever talk about me? And what about your first years at Hogwarts? You must remember how I once hanged him on that hall stand in the Central Hall by his ears. Or did he modify your memory when it comes to that? Seems like something he would do, doesn't it?"

Her voice was high and girly, almost friendly, but Mary knew it was just an act and that this woman could strike at any moment. "Bellatrix," she said as she concluded that this must be Sirius's infamous cousin, one of Voldemort's most devoted servants and numerous because of her washpish personality.

Bellatrix narrowed her eyes. "That's Mrs. Lestrange to you, Mudblood."

"Darling," the unmasked male Death Eater interrupted. "Will you cut to the chase! We've got work to do. The Dark Lord-"

"I'm getting there, Rodolphus," Bellatrix snarled. "You," she said as she strode towards Mary until she was standing in front of her. "What do you know about Harry Potter?"

Mary stared at her, crossing her fingers that Remus would hurry up or that Sirius would get back soon. "I eh- I don't know what you're talking about."

Bellatrix's nostrils were flaring and her dark eyes glinted when she hissed: "You _lie_! I hate liars." She raised her own wand in less than a second. "_Crucio!_"

Mary screamed and fell to the floor, where she writhed and twisted in agony. The pain was almost unbearable, but she forced herself not to scream, because she knew that would wake up Erin and no matter what happened, her first priority was to make sure that Erin wouldn't get hurt. After another moment, Bellatrix lifted the curse. There was anger and hate in her eyes when a panting Mary looked at her, but there was also a note of admiration. "Hmmm, you're not such a screamer, are you? Not yet at least…"

Rodolphus had finally lost his patience and strolled over to them. He roughly pulled Mary up and threw her against the wall. "Speak Woods: what do you know about Potter?"

"What- Harry?" Mary panted as she tried to sit up straight.

"Yes! Apparently the kid has special powers."

"Powers? What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"

"I tell you what I'm talking about!" Bellatrix sneered. "Today our master finally discovered where Albus Dumbledore was hiding the Potters. He went over there earlier tonight and took care of them, but something went wrong when he encountered their little brat. For some ridiculous reason, the Dark Lord has vanished. And you, Woods, are going to tell us how to bring him back."

But Mary was still trying to process the first part of what Bellatrix has said. Lily and James were _dead_? Killed by Voldemort? This devastating information was cutting through her like a knife and was hurting countless times more than any Cruciatus Curse that had ever struck her. She just didn't understand how this could have happened. There _had_ been a Secret-Keeper so they should have been safe, but Voldemort had managed to kill them after all, but how was that even possible? Unless… "No," Mary suddenly stammered, more to herself than to anyone else. He couldn't have. Sirius could not possibly have betrayed them all. She continued to repeat this to herself, as if the simple word "no" would be able to erase the horrifying thought that was haunting her dazed mind. "No, no, no."

"Stop jabbering and listen to me!" Bellatrix yelled. "Tell me how to bring back the Dark Lord."

"I- I don't know."

"No? Maybe another Cruciatus Curse will refresh your memory."

She had already raised her wand when Rodolphus caught her arm. "Wait. What if that Mudblood-loving fool of a Headmaster put some kind of protective spell on _all_ the Order-children?"

"And what if he did?" Bellatrix replied as she tried to push him away.

"That could mean that whatever it was that made the Dark Lord vanished is still connected to the Potter-brat. And perhaps the others… So if we eliminate all the kids, there might be a way to break the spell."

Bellatrix frowned at her husband for a long time as she pondered over his words until finally – to Mary's horror – a sick and twisted smile crossed her face. "You know, that makes sense," she said before turning back to Mary and asking her in a dangerously soft voice: "Where is your daughter?"

Mary's heart was suddenly hammering against her chest. She knew she had to think of something and fast, because time was running out and Remus still wasn't here. She had no choice but to lie or do whatever they wanted from her; _anything_ to keep them away from Erin. "Y-you're too late. She's not here. Sirius took her with him when he left."

Apparently Murphy's law always strikes at the worst times, because at that very moment, lightning struck a tree at the other end of the street. Along with the bright light and loud rumbling thunder that followed, Erin woke up and started to cry. Bellatrix narrowed her eyes again. "Another lie, why doesn't that surprise me? _Crucio!_"

For the second time that night, Mary was writhing in pain. This time she did allow herself to scream, since it no longer mattered because the Death Eaters already knew they could find Erin upstairs. When Bellatrix finally lifted the curse, she called Rodolphus and the other Death Eaters, who seemed to be some kind of assistants, and walked upstairs without shooting Mary another look.

Mary tried to get to her feet as soon as her legs were allowing her, but her body had not forgotten the last time she had been hit with the Cruciatus Curse. Once again her legs were trembling like two strings of spaghetti and Mary didn't know which spell Moody had used to put a stop to the after-effects. No matter how hard she tried, it was simply impossible to walk up the stairs. But she could still crawl and Mary hoisted herself up step by step, driven by nothing more than her maternal instinct, because she had lost all faith in the world at the moment. If Sirius could only see her now… Would he regret what he had done to her and Lily and James, his best friend? Or was he such a loyal servant to Voldemort that he had stopped to care about that months ago?

Mary was still crawling when she finally entered Erin's room. Bellatrix, Rodolphus and one masked Death Eater – one of them was not there – had gathered around Erin's crib, who was still crying. Which was a relief to Mary, who had feared they had already killed her baby. Maybe there was still something she could do to prevent that from happening. "W-w-wait," she panted.

Rodolphus looked up and a sly smile crossed his spiteful face. "There is something admirable about a mother's strength and will-power when her child is in danger," he told the others. "I would not have expected to see her again so soon, but now she has come to see the show…"

He snapped his fingers to the masked Death Eater and together they marched over to her. They grabbed Mary by the shoulders and put her on her knees, so that she was sitting up straight. Meanwhile, Bellatrix had started to circle the crib. "I never had a thing for kids," she said in a heartless voice while she stared down at Erin, who was now crying hysterically, as if the girl was sensing the danger. "Especially not for children who are poisoning my bloodline. My cousin has been so stupid… But none of that matters now. First this filfthy half-blood child, then Potter, then the Longbottom's brat and then…"

Her dark eyes were glinting with anticipation and she slowly pointed her wand at Erin's forehead.

"Don't hurt her!" Mary yelled while she was desperately trying to wriggle free, but it was pointless. The strong hands of Rodolphus and the other Death Eater, who appeared to be female, were pinning her weakened body down to the floor with remarkable ease.

Bellatrix raised her eyebrows at her. "Hurt her?"

"She's only an innocent child, please! Hurt me instead. Torture me, kill me if you will, but please leave Erin alone." Tears were streaming down her face and Mary knew there was nothing she could do to protect Erin now. It was going to happen. Bellatrix was about to kill her daughter in front of her eyes. The thought alone was enough to drive her more mad than any Cruciatus Curse could ever do.

Bellatrix was still staring at her with a malicious glint in her eyes and actually seemed to be enjoying herself. "What do you think of me, Woods? That I'm a _complete_ soulless person? Of course I'm not going to torture a baby. No, her death will be swift and painless, or so I've been told…"

She pointed her wand at Erin once more and Mary tried to shake off her waylayers more vehemently than ever before. The mask of the female Death Eaters slid off in the process and to her own shock and abomination, Mary started to beg when she recognized the girl. "Alison! Alison please, you cannot do this. Help me, I'll find a way to keep you out of Azkaban, I promise! Please don't-"

But Alison simply shook her head. "I warned you about this a long time ago. You should have run while you had the chance."

"But look what you're about to do! You'll be accessory to killing an innocent baby and-"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Bellatrix said while she rolled her eyes and pointed her wand at Mary instead. "Just shut up, filfthy Mudblood. _Crucio!_"

For the third time that night, Mary had to deal with an unbearable pain that seemed to put her spine on fire. For some reason, the pain and the effects were intensifying with every curse and Mary was literally gasping for air when Bellatrix lifted the curse. And even though Mary immediately got back to trying to break free after all, she hardly had time to look up and process what was happening, because Bellatrix wasn't about to waste any more time and took careful aim with her wand. "_Avada Kedavra._"

There was a blinding flash of green light, and the crying stopped abruptly, but the silence seemed to be more deafening than Erin's crying had ever been to Mary's ears. The powerful and instinctive longing to fight for their lives was draining rapidly; like water in a sink with no plug. Mary's mouth was dry and her arms and legs were shaking vehemently, but she could no longer feel any physical pain. Contrary to her heart, which appeared to have been shredded to pieces. Erin was gone and there was nothing in the world that could bring her back. This feeling hurt so much that Mary had stopped fighting and was simply hanging onto Alison and Rodolphus instead, who shook her off roughly and she helplessly slumped down onto the floor.

Mary did not care less if this would also be the end of her. She could not possibly be more dead than she was already feeling. But unfortunately, Bellatrix didn't appear to be done with her yet. "Peace at last," she sighed, clearly relieved that she had been released from Erin's crying for good. "Pettigrew, the coast is clear. You can come out now."

At first, Mary wasn't quite sure if she had heard that last part right, but slowly, untenably slowly, the fourth and final Death Eater was appearing in the door-opening of Erin's room. Dark spots in front of her eyes were making Mary's vision blurry, but she could still see that the young man was no longer wearing a mask. It was Peter. His eyes were red and puffy and he was trembling on his legs while he tried to avoid her gaze with all his might. Mary swallowed with difficulty as she forced her fuzzy brain to process this crucial bit of information. Peter was the spy. Peter, not Sirius. Sirius hadn't betrayed them after all. But Peter, _Peter_… A sudden rush of extreme hate was boiling up inside her. "You," she hissed. "_You_… You will pay for this. I swear, if it's the last thing I'll do…"

Peter made a whimpering sound and slowly edged back to the wall, but Rodolphus merely laughed hatefully. "You might want to hurry up with that Woods, because your time is about to be up."

Bellatrix pushed Mary back onto the floor and looked at Peter. "Are you going to watch this, Pettigrew?"

Peter made a scared sqeaky sound and shook his head. He was about to walk through the door when he turned back and looked at Mary. For a brief moment, he almost made an attempt to apologize, but Mary's intense glare made him reconsider and he disappeared out of sight without looking back.

"Now I'm not sure what this final curse will do to you, Woods," Bellatrix said out of nowhere, and Mary knew that she had aimed her wand at her back. "But I won't stop until… eh, shall we say anything exciting happens?"

Without another word, Bellatrix cast the Cruciatus Curse on her once more and this time, Mary welcomed the destructive pain with open arms. Anything, whether it was insanity or death, would be better than having to live with the knowledge that she had failed to protect her daughter's life. Mary had become unable to control her shaking limbs and realized that the force of her body was slowly diminishing. But the pain did not decrease. On the contrary, the curse was overburdening her nervous system more and more and the dancing spots in front of her eyes were multiplying rapidly. Near the end, as it seemed to become darker and darker around her, Mary expected that her head was going to burst. And then… there was nothing.

-End of Update-

**A/N: leaves tissues and a great amount of rat poison behind Sorry guys... **

**But I didn't have**** much of a choice, it had to end like this eventually. Although end… No wait, it's not the end. I forgot to tell you that this story will try to solve another big mystery around that Halloween, meaning: where the hell was Remus Lupin that night?**

**The next chapter will reveal**** this, as well as that… Mary did not die in this chapter. Which doesn't mean she won't eventually, but still… I **_**am**_** a ruthless baby killer, though. But blame that one on JK, because she's the one who stated that Sirius did not have kids when he died :P**

**Anyway, the reason I am telling you guys this is because the teaser would have given it away anyway, haha. So here's that revealing little teaser and don't forget to leave a review when you drop by. I'm thinking you all have something to say about this one, don't you?**

"_I-I don't have a flask, but just tell me. You mentioned a traitor. Was he there when they attacked you?"__not__ fine? Do you know something I don't?"_

Mary nodded and tried to steady her irregular breathing. "F-f-find him."

"Yes, I already told you I will. I will find Sirius."

Remus shot her a determined look and Mary stared at him. She wasn't sure if she liked that look. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? "P-peter. F-find Peter…"

He was now softly squeezing her arm and tried to smile reassuringly. "Peter is doing fine, Mary. He sent me an owl about an hour ago. He's alright."

She stared at him in horror before blinking vehemently to fight the rapidly multiplying black spots that were once again dancing in front of her eyes. She groaned. "No, no, no…"

Remus looked alarmed. "He is

Mary groaned again. Yes, she knew something he did not: that Peter betrayed them all and had been working for Voldemort for a very long time. And no one noticed, no one ever suspected him. She hadn't either. How could they have been so blind? But Sirius, oh God, Sirius… Mary twisted in agony and gulped. "No. Find Peter," she said as strongly as possible.


	87. Epiphany

**Chapter ****Eighty-Seven**

But that was not the end. When Mary dazedly opened her eyes, she had no idea how long she had passed out, but what she did manage to establish – despite the non-stop spinning of her head - was that she was no longer in Erin's bedroom. Instead, she found herself in a bed in a wide and square, but rather empty room. There was only one round window on the opposite wall and there was no light shining through, which indicated that it was not yet dawn. There was also a single chair standing next to her bed and a small night stand with a candleholder on it, but that was about it.

This strange and impersonal room would have seriously freaked Mary out if it were not for the fact that she knew this room. She had been here before, quite a few times as a matter of a fact. But always as a Healer, to take care of the people in this room; never in a million years did she think she would end up here herself. As a patient… Mary finally knew where she was. She was in St. Mungo's, on the so-called Freya Wing, a quiet department on the far left side of the hospital. It was a place where terminally ill patients came to be in a sterile and safe environment, a place where they would find a little peace and quiet to spend precious time with their loved ones: a place to die.

For Mary knew perfectly well that was about to happen. How she could have possibly survived that final Cruciatus Curse Bellatrix cast on her, she did not know. It was possible that she had passed out from the pain and the Death Eaters thought she died or perhaps Bellatrix unsubconsciously cast a lighter curse on her. But fact of the matter was that Mary had not gone mad, and therefore she was very aware of the fact that she was toast. Her body suffered four extensive torturing curses in a short amount of time and had sustained irretrievable damage. She could feel the sourness of her skin, the nagging tingling of her muscles and a throbbing pain that was slowly spreading through her abdomen; a clear sign that her vital organs had already started to shut down.

Mary closed her eyes and tried to ignore the psysical pain and knowledge that James and Lily were dead and that Bellatrix had killed Erin, which hurt a hundred times more. She needed to think straight. There might be an important reason why she had not been killed instantly. "Come on, Mary – focus," she thought to herself as she forced her muzzy mind to put the pieces of this impossible puzzle together. She opened her eyes and slowly let her eyes wander around the room. Her vision was as blurry as it had been right before she passed out, so when her gaze rested on a tall figure standing by the door, she did not immediately recognize him. He – Mary concluded that his length and broad shoulders meant it had to be a man – was quietly talking to someone standing just outside the room.

Mary closed her eyes again to hear who it was – she already knew it was not Sirius because this man had less dark hair – and what they were saying; for some reason it had become exhausting and hardly impossible to focus on more than one sense at a time. She concentrated with all her might and heard the man whisper: "But come on, there must be _something_ you can do…"

Another male voice answered and Mary immediately recognized the voice of Pierce, her boss. "I'm sorry. It's a miracle she survived _this_ far…"

There was silence, as the other man took a few deep breaths in an attempt to stay calm. "But Mary… Oh Merlin…"

There was a pause and Mary was almost certain Pierce placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, as she had watched him do many times before. "A person can only bear so many Cruciatus Curses at a time," he explained calmly. "Three is the absolute maximum for a slender girl like Mary, especially when there is not enough time in between for the body to recover. That final curse was just one too many."

"And there is no spell to reverse or at least delay the effects?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Her family is on their way to the hospital as we speak. Surely there must be a way to keep her er… alive at least until they're here?"

"There is not much I can do. Once her vital organs are starting to shut down - and I don't know when that will happen - it's a matter of minutes."

There was another moment of devastating silence and Mary felt like she was floating above the room. It seemed as if she was watching a scene from another person's life, that it was not her own approaching death that these two men were discussing. She thought of her parents and Jenna. Would they get here in time or would she already be dead by then? At last, the man spoke again. "No, Mary…"

Pierce sighed. "I'm devastated myself," he said heavily. "She was one of the brightest students I ever taught. A very promising Spell Damage Healer, and such a nice girl too. I-"

"She is not dead yet," the man interrupted and there was a note of annoyance in his voice.

Pierce cleared his throat. "Of course, of course. Ehm… I gave her a light sedating potion that could cause her to start raving in one way or another, but at least it will keep her a bit more comfortable. I'm afraid that is all I can do. Again, I am so sorry."

"H-How long…"

Pierce didn't answer immediately. "Thirty minutes, an hour at most."

The man mumbled a reply that Mary could not hear and closed the door behind him. She could sense that he was watching her and realized she should probably open her eyes while she still could. When she opened them and blinked, she could see the man from the corner of her eyes. She slowly turned her head so she could look at him. It was Remus. And she had never seen him look more miserable. He appeared to be as devastated as on Brice's funeral, but there was something else than ordinary sadness in his expression: shock, disbelief, _anger_. He seemed to have aged ten years over night. His face had a greyish tinge and the scars and lines in his face were suddenly more tangible. He was just standing there; immobile and anxiously staring at her, as if he feared that she would die the instant he dared to move a muscle.

Mary tried to raise her hand towards him, but she didn't have enough strength. "Remus…?" she asked.

Her voice was barely more than a terrified whisper and when her blue eyes finally found his lightbrown eyes, he walked over at once and sat down. "Oh Godric, Mary I'm so sorry…"

He clasped her hand in both of his own and Mary looked down. It was then that she noticed her engagement ring was missing. How did that happen? She would never take the ring off on her own, so it must have fallen off her finger in the process of being tortured, _or_ someone took it from her when she was unconscious. Mary snapped her eyes shut and bit her lip when she felt a sharp pain on the left side of her ribcage: her spleen.

Mary continued to fight the pain in silence and for a long time, she and Remus did not say a word. At last, when the silence had become even more unbearable than the pain, she opened her mouth to say the first thing that sprang to mind. Unfortunately, Remus spoke up at the exact same moment:

"Erin…"  
"What happened?"

Mary looked at Remus as she put her other hand against her abdomen to control the aches. "Erin," she whispered and immediately felt an overpowering pang in her heart: it was like calling her daughter's name was finalizing that she was gone, that she was really dead. A tear trickled down her cheek. "Erin, Erin…"

"I know, I know," Remus replied heavily. He was trying to speak in a soothing voice, but failed miserably – there was a tremor in his hoarse voice as well. "Mary," he said softly. "You need to explain what happened. I… I found you in front of Erin's crib, but who… who did this?"

Mary noticed that breathing was becoming more difficult by the minute. She had started to gasp for air and with another shock, she noticed she could no longer move her legs. She was still focusing on her breathing and trying to figure out which body part would shut down next when Remus spoke again, this time more urgently. "You need to explain. I will make him pay for this, I swear. I'm going to hunt him down, kill him with my bare hands if I have to… But tell me, what happened?"

There was something unnerving about what Remus said, something that Mary did not like at all, but she was too dizzy to put her finger on what was bugging her. She was about to tell him about Bellatrix had done to her and Erin and that Neville Longbottom was in grave danger too, when she literally gasped in pain. It was like an invisible hand was pressing hard on her chest and Mary instantly knew did not have much time left. She had studied the Unforgivable Curses at the Healer Program and knew this was the final stage of Cruciatus: soon her heart would give up, too weak and no longer able to deal with the destructive effects of the curse.

"Come on, Mary," Remus repeated again and he squeezed her hand. "Who did this to you? I need some facts here. I will make him pay for what he did to you and Lily and James, you have my word, but…"

He did not finish his last sentence, but he did not have to, because Mary finally realized what was about to happen, what had been bugging her so much. Her stomach gave an unpleasant lurch: Remus, like she had believed herself, thought Sirius was the Secret-Keeper. That meant Remus was absolutely sure that Sirius was the traitor: that he had sold James and Lily to Voldemort, that he allowed the Death Eaters to murder his own fiancée and daughter. He must be thinking that Sirius was an absolute monster. But he was wrong, _so wrong_… Mary was the only one still alive who knew the truth, besides Sirius of course, but who would ever believe him?

Everything was perfectly clear now. Mary suddenly understood why she had survived this long: she had to tell Remus the truth, so that he could help Sirius and make sure that Peter would be punished. Mary took a few deep breaths and embraced the sudden clear state of her mind. The numbness had disappeared: she knew what she had to do. She took another deep breath and opened her mouth to tell Remus everything, but for some reason, she could not get the words out. Her mind might have been more focused than before, but she could hardly control the incomprehensible word stream flowing out of her mumbling mouth. "You need tzo.. zet things right. Izz not what it zeems… Is not traitor… Help him."

Remus stared at her. "What? What are you saying?"

Mary shot a desperate look at the ceiling. This was hopeless. She was running out of time and Sirius would be doomed if she did not tell Remus the truth. "Flask!" she blurted out in sudden inspiration. If she could transport her memory of this night to a flask, Remus could watch it in Dumbledore's Pensieve and draw his own conclusions from that. "Flask, a flask!" she muttered when he shot her another quizzical look.

"I-I don't have a flask, but just tell me. You mentioned a traitor. Was he there when they attacked you?"

Mary nodded and tried to steady her irregular breathing. "F-f-find him."

"Yes, I already told you I will. I will find Sirius."

He clenched his fist and shot her a determined look. Mary stared at him. She was not sure if she liked that look. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? "P-peter. F-find Peter…"

Remus was now softly stroking her arm and tried to smile reassuringly. "Peter is doing fine, Mary. He sent me an owl about an hour ago. He's alright."

She stared at him in horror before blinking vehemently to fight the rapidly multiplying black spots that were once again dancing in front of her eyes. She groaned. "No, no, no…"

Remus looked alarmed. "He is _not_ fine? Do you know something I don't?"

She groaned again. Yes, she knew something he did not: that Peter betrayed them all and had been working for Voldemort for a very long time. And no one noticed, no one ever suspected him. She hadn't either. How could they have been so blind? But Sirius, oh God, Sirius… Mary twisted in agony and gulped. "No. Find Peter," she said as strongly as possible.

Remus shot her a confused look. "What about him?"

Mary focused all her energy on blurting out the crucial answer to that question. "Is not Sirius. Peter."

He frowned and watched her closely and she made sure that she was looking straight at him. "Not Sirius. Peter," she said again, right when her breathing started to falter.

Remus continued to stare at her for a long time and Mary could not figure out what he was thinking exactly, but she thought she was finally getting through to him and at last, with another sad smile crossing his face, he was nodding slowly. "Okay…" he said, gently squeezing her hand. "It's okay Mary, I understand."

"Peter," Mary repeated one last time for good measure and he nodded again.

Mary heaved a heavy, but relieved sigh and let her head fall back against the pillow. It was done, she did what she had to do. It would be alright now, Remus would find Sirius and together they would catch Peter and get him sent off to Azkaban. Sirius would be absolutely devastated that she and Erin died but eventually, he and Remus would get on with their lives, and be happy. And Mary strongly believed that if their love was strong enough, they would see each other again in the end. She would wait for him, up there – wherever that may be - along with Erin, and Lily and James.

Mary suddenly realized that the pain in her body was slowly fading away. She felt warm and cold at the same time and for some reason, remarkably peaceful. She became aware that Remus had once again taken her hand in his. He squeezed it softly and whispered: "It's fine, you've been through enough. It's alright… Let go, Mare, let go."

This was the first time ever that she had heard him using her nickname. Mary opened her eyes and looked at him: he was crying. Another thing she had never seen him do from up close. His warm eyes were wet and she realizing that he was srill trying hard to keep himself together. Mary felt a few tears trickling down her cheeks as well and she suddenly could think of no one else but Sirius. She was going to miss him so much… "T-tell him," she whispered with difficulty - forcing herself to speak one last time - and she knew that Remus understood she was talking about Sirius and not Peter. "Tell him that I am not mad, that I understand now… T-that it is not his fault."

Remus looked at her with an unreadable expression in his eyes without saying anything, and Mary gasped for air, knowing she had only but a minute left before she was going to lose consciousness. She swallowed painfully. "And t-tell him that I love him. Always have done, always will."

Remus stared at the floor for another moment and Mary vaguely wondered if he was just pulling himself together or that there was something else going on, but eventually he did look up at her and nodded gravely. "I will," he said hoarsely and bent forward to kiss her wet cheek. "You can let go now," he whispered softly. "Let go..."

Mary obeyed and finally allowed her exhausted head to rest back against the pillow. There was nothing left to say or do. It was over. Her life was over. The second Mary closed her eyes and gave in to the fast approaching blackness, she felt that her body energy, or perhaps that was her soul, slowly started to slip away. Her breathing steadied over the last few minutes as she drifted away in a dreamless slumber.

All the time Remus was watching her every move closely, gently stroking her with one hand and occasionally wiping a tear away with the other. And then, her heart finally gave up the battle and she stopped breathing abruptly. And Mary did not know that Remus jumped up from his seat and pulled his hair in frustration and maddening grief, she did not know that he furiously kicked the chair across the room, and she did not know he let out a frustrated howl that seemed strangely similar to the cry of a wolf. She could not know, because Mary Woods was dead.

-End of Update-

**A/N Sorry everyone…**** I had no choice but to end it like this. And now all there is left is the epilogue which will be told from Sirius's pov. I hope you – despite all the sadness – still enjoyed this chapter. Let me know what you think! I'll leave you with a teaser of the epilogue:**

"_Sirius, tha' yeh?"_

_Sirius wheeled around and saw that Hagrid was walking towards him. He looked shaken and grieved, but was carefully holding a little bundle in his arms. "Hagrid!" he called before his eyes shot to the bundle. "Is that Harry? A-and what happened here?"_

_"He-who-must-not-be-named happened," Hagrid said gravely._

_"B-but Merlin, the house! And Harry, is he alright?"_

_Hagrid nodded. "He has a great slash across his forehead, bu' other than tha' he seems jus' fine."_

_Sirius stared at him in a daze before he looked down at his godson's face and noticed there was a striking lightning-shaped scar across his forehead. He briefly wondered what that could mean before looking back at the house. "And James, Lily?"_

_Hagrid bowed his head. "Gone."_

_"Gone?" Sirius echoed, hardly registering what was happening. He had already expected it the minute he arrived, but to actually hear Hagrid say it made his friend's deaths much more definite. "And Voldemort?"_

_"Shhhh!" Hagrid hissed with a shudder. "Don' say his name. And I don' know. Searched the entire place and there's no sign of him there." He suddenly shot him a close look. "Unless yeh know somethin'?"_

_"No," Sirius said breathlessly before he turned on his feet and groaned while pulling his hair. "Merlin James, Lily… Lily, James… Oh Merlin, Merlin."_

_He suddenly felt a large hand on his shoulder. "Pull yerself together, Sirius. It's not yer fault."_


	88. Live Together, Die Alone

**Epilogue:**

Something wasn't right. That very same thought kept running through Sirius's head as he was flying over London, like it had been in his head the entire day. He should be feeling fine – after all, their plan was working. So far, no one – not Mary, not even Dumbledore – knew that not Sirius, but Peter Pettigrew had become the Secret-Keeper of the Potters. Sirius thought this switch would be the ultimate bluff: Voldemort and the Death Eaters would never guess that James and Lily had put their trust in Peter and would continue to hunt him, their strongest friend, down instead. He was going into hiding soon enough and this way, he could keep Mary and Erin and the Potters safe at the same time. He could still see himself sitting at the Potter's kitchen table over a week ago as he tried to convince James and Lily of his masterplan. "Don't you see? This is _the_ way to outsmart Voldemort. Never in a million years is he going to guess that you chose Peter over me."

James sat down with Harry on his lap and exchanged a glance with Lily. "It might work. It just might… Except for the fact that Peter is not as brave as you or Remus. Do you think he would want to-?"

"-We'll find a way to convince him. He does want to help, you know that – he just needs a little encouragement."

Lily was fiddling with her mug of coffee. "But what about Mary, Sirius?"

"What about her?"

She shot him a look. "If we're actually going through with this, and if Peter wants to become our Secret-Keeper, how in Merlin's name are you going to keep her out of this?"

Sirius realized that Lily had a point; he even agreed that besides almost impossible, it would be simply wrong to keep Mary in the dark like this, but he knew there was no other way. "I'm not going to tell her."

"And you honestly believe that she's not going to ask you at one point?"

"She won't," Sirius replied, and he was surprised at how fairly certain he was about this. "Mary hasn't addressed the matter ever since our row last week and if I'm not mistaken, she prefers not knowing if I decided to become the Secret-Keeper after all. Listen," he said as he straightened up slightly in his seat. "I have thought this all through. It's crucial that few people know about this switch. It has to be just you guys, me and Peter. No one else. The others must still think _I_ am the one. I'll make sure Albus knows it too…"

"And then what?" Lily asked, still looking unconvinced. "The rest of the world and Voldemort will believe you're the Secret-Keeper. What if he or the Death Eaters chase you down? What if they target Mary and Erin to get to you?"

Sirius leaned in a little closer. "That won't happen," he said resolutely. "I will let them glimpse me from time to time on different locations."

"-But how?"

"By going into hiding, of course!" Sirius said, torn between feeling excited about this genius solution and the fact that James and Lily weren't as enthusiastic about it as he thought they would be.

Lily frowned. "Into hiding? But how… Hang on, w-without telling Mary?"

Sirius nodded gravely as he felt that the excitement from only moments before was slowly diminishing. This was one part of the plan that was troubling him greatly. "It is the only way. I'm going to disappear."

Her mouth fell open and even James was shaking his head as he shot him a reproachful look. "Merlin mate, that is just _wrong_. You're going vanish without a trace?"

Sirius nodded again, keeping his eyes fixed on Harry who was cheerfully tugging on a bit of fluff on his father's sweater, and tried to block out the sharp pang of guilt whenever he thought about what his disappearance would do to Mary and Erin, but he had no choice: it was the only way to keep everyone safe. "Only temporary. I plan to leave in the first week of November and will return as soon as things have calmed down, and I'm sure at that time Mary will see why we-"

"-No, she won't!" Lily interrupted and Harry looked up, startled at his mother's shrill voice. "Damn it, Sirius, you have no idea what it will do to her if you vanish like this…"

"Of course it will devastate her as much as it is devastating me, but I don't really have a choice here, Lily. I want to protect her and I need her to protect Erin and…" he exhaled shaprly. "She'll manage. We've discussed what to do if something like this would happen a while ago. Trust me on this – Mary and Erin will cope and that's all that matters."

"But Sirius," James objected hesitantly. "You honestly don't believe that Mary will do nothing when you disappear just like-" he snapped his fingers "-that? She's going to do everything in her power to find you."

"I know that," Sirius said heavily as he tiredly massaged his temples. "Which is why I need you and the others to keep an eye on her and Erin."

Lily sighed. "But it'll destroy Mary, Sirius…" she said in a wobbly voice. "You're everything to her."

He bit his lip and said nothing for a moment while he listened to the gentle ticking of the clock above the table. "And she is everything to me," he muttered at last, staring down at his mug. "But so are you."

He looked up at her and saw that there were tears in her eyes. "Really Lily," Sirius said earnestly as he put his hand over hers. "This is going to be hard on all of us, but it will be worth it in the end. You'll see, in a few years we'll be laughing over that ugly goof of a Voldiepants who once thought he stood a chance against the invincible Marauders and their families."

Lily snorted through her tears and Sirius managed to produce a rather convincing grin. "So… Are you in?"

There was a long thoughtful pause before she hesitantly said: "But Mary and Erin…"

Sirius was about to try and soothe Lily's conscience once more but this time James beat him to it. "-Will be in just as much danger if we don't switch to Peter or even choose Dumbledore. Mary is a useful member of the Order, Lil, that already makes her a target no matter what we do. And I really think it's justified to put your own family first, that's what she would want you to do and you know it. D'you see our little man here?"

He pulled Lily close to him so that Harry could put his little arms around her neck and snuggle up close to his mother. "Ma-ma," he cooed.

She swallowed with difficulty and only looked up at James when he quietly said: "It's all about him. Think about him…"

It took Lily another moment before she gave in at last and nodded without saying a word. James, audibly touched, hugged her even closer and kissed her on the forehead. Sirius once again found himself thinking about how much his best friend had aged over the last few years – the stress was making him look about ten years older than he actually was. "We should act quickly. The sooner we can cast the Fidelius Charm the better. When is Peter coming by?"

"Tonight," James replied. "I will talk to him."

"Good," Sirius nodded. "Get back to me as soon as you know if he wants to do it."

"I will."

And he did. Later that night, James wrote a note to Sirius in which he explained that Peter was up for the job. In fact, to James's amazement, he seemed quite eager to become the Secret-Keeper instead of Sirius. This appeared a bit odd and out of character of the Wormtail they had known for years, but Sirius didn't have time to worry about Peter's sudden change of heart and was actually pleased that their little friend had finally decided to step up his game. With instructions from Dumbledore Lily managed to cast the Fidelius Charm a few nights later, which meant the Potters were now as safe from Voldemort as they would ever be, unless of course Peter would inform the Death Eaters after all.

And despite everything, this was what was bothering Sirius the most. Even though he knew they had done the right thing by switching to Peter, there was still part of him that didn't feel comfortable with giving the direction of the situation to someone else. It was no longer up to him, but to Peter and if he cracked under the pressure…

This was why Sirius was flying to his apartment first. He needed to check on Peter before he could go to Godric's Hollow. As far as Sirius knew, Peter had told James he would be spending this Halloween at home with a basket of sugarquills all to himself. Sirius smiled at his friend's addiction to sweets when he suddenly thought of Mary and Erin; something was telling him he shouldn't have left them alone like that, but they were safe at home for the moment and Sirius didn't plan on staying over at James and Lily's long – he would be back within the hour. Sirius accelerated slightly and tried to keep his bike level in the stormy wind, which was becoming more feisty by the minute. At last he was seeing Peter's apartment and he managed to lower his bike to the ground without being seen. He parked it out of sight next to a tree and hurried up the stairs. He was panting when he arrived in front of Peter's door, knocked twice and frowned when no one answered. He knocked again, more urgently this time, but still… nothing. Sirius peered through the window next to the door, but everything inside was dark. "This is odd," he thought to himself as he reached for his wand. "_Alohomora_."

The front door swung open and Sirius walked inside. It was completely dark around him. "Peter?" he called worriedly, but his friend did not reply.

Sirius felt the doorpost in utter darkness in an attempt to find the light switch and switched it on when he had finally found it. He didn't know exactly what he had expected to see when Peter did not answer to his calls – blood stains on the floor, his friend's dead body even? - but it certainly wasn't this: the deserted room looked like it always did: a bit messy, but that was Peter's style. Aside from that there was no sign of struggle. Sirius hesitantly entered the kitchen and noticed the deserted basket of Sugarquills standing on the sink – Peter had not touched them.

"Peter?" he called again when he made his way over to the bedroom, which looked as deserted as the rest of the apartment. Bathroom – empty. Toilet – empty. Finally, Sirius finally shot a look at the balcony – empty. He returned to the living room, feeling bemused.

But as he was standing there, a feeling of apprehension was starting to wash over him. There had been no struggle in this house, so wherever Peter was and with whom, he had left his place voluntarily. Sirius suddenly remembered James's letter – how eager Peter was to become the Secret-Keeper, even though there was nothing to gain for him instead of putting his life on the line. Unless… It was like someone was plunging a heavy stone in his stomach. Peter was the spy… Not Remus, not Frank or Moody or Elphias, but little Peter had been the traitor of the Order. And he was the only one who could inform Voldemort about the Potter's hiding place. How long would it take the Dark Lord to get to Godric's Hollow?

Sirius stormed out of the apartment and didn't even bother to switch off the lights or close the door behind him. He had to get there first, had to warn James and Lily, fight against Voldemort if he had to… He ran down the stairs and tripped over his feet when he got near the bottom, but crawled up at once and ignored the sharp pain in his left knee as he sprinted to his bike, kicked it on and took off in the night with a thundering roar. While he was flying to Godric's Hollow as fast as his bike was allowing him, he was becoming more furious with himself. How could they have been so stupid? Everything was crystal clear to him now: Peter's countless secret appointments, his dates with Alison – another Death Eater for crying out loud! - the way he almost accidentally-on purpose killed Remus at Magdalen by letting the balcony crash down right on top of him, the way he always tried to avoid being alone in a room with Dumbledore or Moody… Sirius snorted angrily. Mad-Eye, suspicious of character as he might be - was right after all – Peter was the Order spy, had been working against them for months or even years. Would he be partly responsible for Brice's death as well?

And now Peter was about to sell Lily, James and Harry to Voldemort. Or had he already done that? Sirius sped up his bike even more – if only he could get to James and Lily in time. They would alert Dumbledore at once and Peter would be sent to Azkaban for treachery. As long as he would get there in time, as long as it would not be too late.

But when the cottage of James and Lily finally got into view, Sirius's heart stopped. All that was left from the house was a ruin: the entire first floor seemed to have disappeared and dark spirals of smoke were swirling upwards from the smouldering debree. What kind of curse could have made something like that happen? But despite the state of the cottage, there was one thing that scared Sirius even more: the enormous Dark Mark that was floating above it, shinging an eerie green light over the remains of the house and garden. He landed his bike and stared at the ruins with an open mouth. At first he had trouble believing what his eyes were showing him, but slowly he began to realize that he was too late: Peter had already warned Voldemort, who had come down to murder the Potters.

Sirius tried to ignore the desperate feeling rising up in his chest and switched off the motor. He forced himself to approach the devastating crime scene. With every hesitating step, Sirius knew it, felt it: he had failed more than he could possibly imagine. James, Lily and Harry were dead because of him, because he insisted to switch to Peter so that he could keep Mary safe. He was standing in front of the garden gate and stared at the smoldering remains of the house. Their bodies must still be inside there, somewhere… He was just comtemplating if there would be a way to get them out from under the debree, when-

"Sirius, tha' yeh?"

Sirius wheeled around and saw that Hagrid was walking towards him. He looked shaken and grieved, but was carefully holding a little bundle in his arms. "Hagrid!" he called before his eyes shot to the bundle. "Is that Harry? A-and what happened here?"

"He-who-must-not-be-named happened," Hagrid said gravely.

"B-but Merlin, the house! And Harry, is he alright?"

Hagrid nodded. "He has a great slash across his forehead, bu' other than tha' he seems jus' fine."

Sirius stared at him in a daze before he looked down at his godson's face and noticed there was a striking lightning-shaped scar across his forehead. He briefly wondered what that could mean before looking back at the house. "And James, Lily?"

Hagrid bowed his head. "Gone."

"Gone?" Sirius echoed, hardly registering what was happening. He had already expected it the minute he arrived, but to actually hear Hagrid say it made his friend's deaths much more definite. "And Voldemort?"

"Shhhh!" Hagrid hissed with a shudder. "Don' say his name. And I don' know. Searched the entire place and there's no sign of him there." He suddenly shot him a close look. "Unless yeh know somethin'?"

"No," Sirius said breathlessly before he turned on his feet and groaned while he pulled his hair. "Merlin James, Lily… Lily, James… Oh Merlin, Merlin."

He suddenly felt a large hand on his shoulder. "Pull yerself together, Sirius. It's not yer fault."

Sirius had to fight a strong impulse to burst out laughing. "Not my fault," he muttered. "If only you knew…"

He was staring into the distance and could sense that Hagrid was watching him closely. "Go home," he said after a pause. "Go teh Mary an' wait fer Dumbledore's instructions when yeh get there."

Sirius nodded slowly, dreading to go home more than anything. The thought of explaining to Mary what happened to her friends, how foolish they had been… He suddenly realized he was trembling on his legs when he looked at Hagrid. "Yes… Yes, I should. But what about Harry?"

"Don' yeh worry about tha'. He's goin' to his aunt an' uncles."

"What?" Sirius cried, looking horrified. "To Petunia and Dursley? Are you out of your mind, Hagrid? They hated Lily, hated James. No, just give Harry to me – I'm his godfather. I'll take care of him."

Hagrid shrugged. "No can do, Sirius. I've got me orders from Dumbledore teh bring little Harry teh Privet Drive right now."

Sirius stared at him. "Did he say why, Hagrid?"

"Does Dumbledore always fully explain wha' he's up teh to yeh, Sirius?"

"No, but…"

"Well then, I'm on a tight schedule here, so if yeh'll excuse me…"

He brushed past him and Sirius was watching him walk away when his eyes fell on his motorbike, parked a little ahead. "Hagrid wait!"

Hagrid turned around as Sirius was bringing the motorbike over to him. "Here, take my bike. It will get you to Little Whinging faster."

Hagrid looked from him to the bike and back. "Are yeh sure?"

Sirius nodded. "I won't be needing it anymore. Please, take it."

After another tense moment of silence, Hagrid nodded. "Alrigh'."

He got onto the bike and - after making sure that Harry was safely tucked inside his big coat – got off into the stormy sky. Sirius watched them fly away and waited until they disappeared from view. They did far too soon for his liking, but Sirius knew what he was about to do could not wait forever. He walked back to the house and headed inside. He did not have to look long to find James's body. He lay at the bottom of the stairs, with his limbs edged in an unnatural position, his glasses askew. Sirius gulped as he looked down at the lifeless shell of the guy that had been his brother for years, and now Sirius had killed him, killed him with his stupidity. The hatred he was feeling towards Peter was suddenly flaring up – he was going to kill him if it would be the last thing he did. Sirius crouched down next to James's body and took off his glasses. He put his arms under James's shoulder and carefully lifted and dragged him to the middle of what was left of the hallway, safe from any falling debree. He put his glasses down next to him before hesitantly finding a way up the stairs.

Hagrid had been right: there was no sign of Voldemort on the main and first floor of the house, but Lily's body lay in front of Harry's crib. Her emerald green eyes were still open as they stared into nothingness and Sirius needed a moment to lean back against the door post and gather his strength and courage before he could go on. He forced himself to remember what he was looking at: the sight of an ever beautiful but unmistakenly dead Lily on the floor: he would need this haunting memory in order to be able to kill Peter. He had never murdered someone before and had not thought he was capable of taking another person's life, but as he was staring down at Lily's frail body, he realized he would finish Peter off without even a second of hesitation. He would pay for this…

At last, Sirius moved forward and gently closed Lily's bright eyes for good before he lifted her up in his arms. Part of her long auburn hair was falling in front of her fair face and he tenderly tucked it behind her ears – her skin already felt cold. Sirius sighed and tried to avoid the thought that he was carrying a corpse down the stairs. After he had layed Lily's body down next to that of James, Sirius stood back and watched them as he finally allowed the grief to wash over him. He could count the times he had cried in his life on one hand but now, the tears were freely falling from his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry…"

He looked up when he heard several soft pops and voices that were speaking urgently and became louder and louder. Sirius started as he recognized the voice of Auror Matthews, his mentor. They would be investigating the crime scene and he was still here – suddenly, a terrible thought struck him: everyone thought he was the Secret-Keeper. There was no one alive who could set the record straight, except Peter but obviously he wasn't going to tell the truth anytime soon. Not even with Voldemort gone… Peter would be all too happy to let people believe it was Sirius who betrayed James and Lily, and not him. Sirius leaned against the wall and forced himself to think. He had to find Peter before the Aurors caught him instead. He knew for a fact that Peter would break under the pressure if Matthews or Moody questioned him long enough. He had to turn Peter in and restrain himself from killing him, at least for now. Sirius's eyes shot open when one of the Aurors was about to come in and he disapparated to Peter's apartment.

He waited there for several hours, but of course Peter did not come back. Sirius waited some more, but had enough when the sun was coming up. He then successively apparated to Remus's place (no one was there), his own place (not a sign of Mary and Erin, which Sirius reasoned was only a good sign), Frank and Alice's house (they were not home either), The Leaky Cauldron, The Dove and even The City Arms, but Peter seemed to have disappeared from the face of of the earth. Around eight o'clock in the morning, when Muggle London was getting ready for work, Sirius had run out of ideas where Peter could be hiding and was exhausted. He was just thinking of apparating to Hogwarts after all and explain everything to Dumbledore when his eye caught a familiar silhouette among the crowd on Leicester Square. "I'll be damned," Sirius muttered.

He quietly followed Peter into a side street and reasoned he should stay among civilians as long as possible, Peter would not possibly dare to attack him in front of all these Muggles. But once again Sirius was clearly underestimating him, because Peter turned around in front of one of the biggest warehouses in London. "How could you, Sirius!" he yelled for the whole street to hear.

Sirius was too dumbstruck to say anything for a moment. "How could _I_?" he hissed angrily when he had finally found his voice again.

But Peter didn't to be seem impressed by his sudden anger. "Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?" he repeated in his shrill voice.

Several people had paused to see what all the fuss was about. They were gathering around them and seemed interested to see what would happen next and who was going to punch who first. "That's enough, Peter!" Sirius growled warningly.

"Lily and James, Sirius – your best friends!"

"Just shut it!" Sirius called as he took a few steps closer to his enemy, ready to draw his wand at any second.

He was now close enough to see Peter's face from up close, which was gleaming with anxious sweat but his mouth was suddenly twisting in an evil grin. "You know," he suddenly said so softly that no one else but Sirius could hear him. "I already knew you wouldn't think twice of hurting your friends, but that you would voluntarily sacrifice your own girlfriend and daughter…"

Peter's voice seemed to be ringing in Sirius's ears and his voice had got caught up in his threat. Surely he was just playing tricks on him, Mary and Erin were perfectly fine. Sirius was angry with himself that Peter could have distracted him like this and he was about to curse him when his eye caught something. Peter had cast a tiny object at him; it seemed to soar through the air in slow motion, shimmering in the weak Autumn sunlight and then he caught it. It was Mary's engagement ring… Sirius twirled it around in his fingers and his mouth suddenly felt dry. She would _never_ let anyone take that ring off, he knew that for sure. Not unless someone took it from her if she was… No. His heart suddenly seemed to plummet with the speed of a rocket. "No…" he groaned, desperately fighting the despair that was rising up in his chest. "No, not Mary…"

Peter's malicious grin widened as he put his hands behind his back and whispered: "No, not just Mary. Erin too... And OW- this what you get for killing Lily and James!" he bellowed the last part of that sentence and before Sirius could register what was happening, he blew up the entire street.

The explosion knocked Sirius off his feet and he landed on the ground several feet ahead, faced down. He breathed in dust and spit out several tiny pieces of rock before he found the strength to get up and look around. Only a second later he wished he had stayed down a little longer. There was a crater in the middle of the street, so deep that it had hit the sewer below. A powerful jet was flooding the street; the brownish water was pouring over several mutilated bodies. Most of the Muggles on the scene were screaming and running around in panic, some others were calling the police and ambulances.

And there was no sign of Peter at all. Sirius crawled up slowly and walked towards the crater. He stared at the bodies surrounding it and felt numb. All that was left of his treacherous friend was a heap of blood-stained robes and – if he was not mistaken, but his vision was so blurry that he could not be sure – a single finger. Peter would appear dead to anyone _but_ Sirius, who knew perfectly well that he had simply cut off his finger before he caused the explosion and sped down into the sewer with the other rats.

Not that Sirius cared about that one bit. He did not really hear she screams of the Muggles or approaching sirenes – all he could see was Mary. The thought that she and Erin had been killed last night was literally consuming them. He was in denial, could simply not believe they were gone - for a brief moment he was even angry at Mary: why didn't she run when she still had the chance? What happened? Didn't she fight for her life at all? How could she leave him like this? But his accusations eventually could only be brought back to himself: he, and only him, had killed them. Sirius did not know who and how they had been murdered, but he knew it would probably not have happened if he had stayed with them instead of going to Godric's Hollow.

He stared at the devastating scene around him and could do absolutely nothing: he was unable to move, to think, even breathing was difficult. All he could feel was pain. Mary was gone. After James and Lily, she had abandoned him as well. Not by her own choice, but she had left him nevertheless. Sirius pinched the engagement ring he was clasping in his hand and he could feel the diamant burning into his palm. She was really gone. He suddenly imagined holding her like he had been holding Lily only a few hours before: her lifeless and cold body in his arms, the long brown hair gloomly waving in the cold wind, those blue eyes staring at him without seeing anything at all…

And as Sirius heard several distinctive pops behind him and realized the Hit Wizards from the Magical Law Enforcement Squad had arrived at the scene, it suddenly hit them. Sirius had never thought of Peter as a clever wizard, but in the end the little git had outsmarted them all. Him, James, Lily, Mary, Remus, even Dumbledore: Peter had turned out to be the genius of the gang and they were the fools who would have died for him if they had to. _Had_ died, Sirius corrected himself as he thought of Gideon and Fabian. Sirius stared at the panicking crowd once more and realized this was the end. James, Lily, Mary, Erin… They were all gone. Because Peter had betrayed them, but why did it feel like _he_ was the one who killed them?

Despite himself and his broken heart, Sirius suddenly started to laugh aloud. A mirthless and hollow laugh that was slowly turning into a hysterical one. After everything he and the other Marauders had been through, it was Peter who had pulled the ultimate prank. He had killed several of them and would be getting away with it all; he was framing Sirius instead. And no matter how Sirius looked at it, that was the work of a true calculating master. Peter had waited for years and eventually he and Voldemort were victorious. And Sirius would be spending the rest of his miserable life in Azkaban with nothing but horrifying memories to haunt him.

Sirius couldn't help but feel that he was deserving that sentence, considering he had failed more than he could have imagined in his worst nightmares. Failed in helping Lily and James, failed in protecting Mary and Erin. His heart ached when he thought of his little girl, who only got to live for such a short time. And yet, Sirius was still laughing hysterically. Laughed when two strong Hit Wizards forced him to the ground on his stomach, laughed as he watched them snap his wand in two and laughed as they pulled him back up to disapparate and take him to the Ministry. Sirius couldn't care less what they were thinking. He had nothing to lose, not anymore. He had already lost everything that was dear to him. He had gone from having it all to having absolutely nothing in one night; he had loved James and he had loved Mary, possibly more than life itself. He could not bear the idea of having to go on without them. However, the thought of losing them was no longer a fear, it had become reality. Sirius had lost Mary for good, and those sparkling blue eyes he had fallen in love with would never look at him again.

-The End-

**A/N I have been thinking to include the following lyrics in this epilogue for a long time. At one point, I had written them in but eventually I decided to leave them out, because it was slowing the words down. However, since I still feel that this song **_**exactly**_** describes what Sirius is feeling when he finds out that Mary and Erin are dead, I couldn't **_**not**_** share these lyrics with you guys. It's not a very famous song (I discovered it on an old Bones-episode myself), but if you go to YouTube, type in "black rebel motorcycle club + feel it now" and click on the second video****, you get a really nice version (live) of the song. I strongly recommend listening to it while you're (re)reading the final part, because it describes what is going through Sirius's head **_**so**_** well. Lyrics can be found below.  
**  
**BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB – FEEL IT NOW**

_And all my sorrows awaken  
And all my fears run down  
I turn myself into an angel  
I run myself into the ground_

_I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll know it now  
I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll feel it now_

_And all the reasons invading  
Twist and turn my aching soul  
I leave myself behind in pieces  
I know you'll need them when I'm gone_

_I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll know it now  
I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll feel it now_

_I'll never see again  
I'll never see again  
The worst has come, I'm falling in  
I'll never see you again  
I'll never see you again  
The worst has come, I've falling in_

_I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll know it now  
I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll feel it now  
I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll know it now  
I'm on my own, I'm sure I'll feel it now_

**Since I have now offic****ially ended this story, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the faithful readers who continued to read despite the long length. I hope you enjoyed the journey as much as I did. I look forward to reading what you guys thought of the epilogue, or the story in general!**

**Anyway, as I've already told some readers, this is not really the end. In the next couple of weeks and months, I will post several one-shots featuring Mary, Sirius and the others. Some will be completely AU (if anyone would like to read about their fairytale wedding, I wrote it), others are in line with canon but will give you more insight on the characters of Sirius and Remus. And if you want to know about Mary and Sirius's reunion in the after-life… Yep, wrote that one too.**

**Finally, there's this sequel (AU) I'm currently working on and posting on HPANA. It's called You Only Live Twice and is basically continuing the story of Everlasting with one major twist: what if Mary and Erin did not die on that Halloween? **

**Eventually I will also post YOLT on here, but I need to get those one-shots up here first!**

**-Mara**


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